Consequences
by OveractiveMuse
Summary: A dream, a night without Edward's careful rules. Edward leaves after the party not knowing what he left behind. The consequences change their lives forever. Bella's choices lead her down a road that might not end in happily ever after.
1. Chapter 1 Eighteen

**A/N: Here we go **** I don't own Twilight sadly, the fabulous SM does.**

Chapter 1- Eighteen

I woke abruptly, in tears long before the dawn on my eighteenth birthday to the sound of my Edward whispering, "Bella?" with concern.

As sleep faded, I realized that it was just a horrible dream. I had been standing there, looking into a mirror reflecting my grandmother's face back at me. I refused to accept the old face, one I hadn't seen since I was twelve, was actually a future version of me. Edward had been standing there next to me in all his youthful perfection. This dream that foreshadowed the future Edward desired was heartbreaking and horrifying. I tried to slow my breathing and calm myself enough to speak to Edward so he wouldn't worry. I knew that Edward blamed himself for my nightmares after what I had been through in Phoenix. Most of my dreams were about the horrible events that had happened last spring, but now that my body was healed, I rarely had them. James, and my resulting nightmares were not Edward's fault; it was just part of being involved in the supernatural world. However, I knew Edward would automatically feel heavy guilt if I told him I had another nightmare. So, I pushed myself to calm down enough to relieve the worry he was probably already beginning to carry.

Edward pulled me into his arms, cradling me so close that all I could smell or taste in the air was his honeyed scent. Explaining my dream to him seemed half-witted, however, I wasn't exactly sure how to calm down enough that he would accept my "I just had a nightmare" explanation. I decided to just tell him, and try as best as I could to not make him as anxious as I did. I took a deep breath in an attempt to relax myself.

As I breathed out, I mumbled into his chest, "I just had a strange nightmare about my gram. I'm alright."

But, my voice gave me away. As I said the last word, meant to soothe the perfect man holding me, my voice cracked. From Edward's quick intake of air, I knew he could tell that I was definitely not all right.

I felt his hand swiftly brush the hair off my cheek and continue down to my jaw. Edward gently tilted my face up so that I would meet his gaze. I attempted again to compose myself. However as I looked into his topaz eyes, all attempts at composure quickly fell away.

"Oh, Edward," I choked out as I threw my arms around his neck, the sobs I tried to contain shaking my whole body.

After a brief moment, Edward stiffened slightly underneath my desperate grasp and frantically whispered, "Charlie," in my ear.

I looked up with wide eyes at Edward. He sat frozen for a moment, listening for sounds that were far too faint for my human ears to catch. It would be difficult to explain to him why Edward was in my room, and in my bed, if we were caught. Even though Edward and I had never gone anywhere past some unforgettable kisses, my father would never believe that; he would go automatically to the worst-case scenario because of his job as the police chief of our small town. After a moment Edward's body finally relaxed, and softened against me slightly. Once my feelings of panic dissipated, I could feel the tears threatening to resurface. Edward looked down at my face with an expression of sorrow as he took in my pain, and a hint of frustration at the chance of being caught by my father.

After a split second, he bent his head down and said quickly, "Let's get you out of here until you can calm down, sweetheart."

I looked up at him mutely and nodded my head once, tears swimming unshed in my eyes. Then I moved with sleepy clumsiness to my closet and changed into regular clothing, not wanting to show up at his house in thin cotton shorts and a tank top. Moreover, I knew the ride over was going to be chilly and my current ensemble would do nothing to protect me from the weather outside. I opened my underwear drawer to find that Alice had replaced everything with little bits of navy lace that were supposed to pass as underwear. I threw on a matching set and swore that my best friend was not going to hear the end of this anytime soon. That thought distracted me enough, allowing me to dress most of the way before the tears returned. Once I finished changing, I pushed my closet door open and practically ran across the room into Edward's waiting arms. The moment his arms encircled me, I reburied my face into his cold, perfect chest.

I felt the air rushing by as Edward swiftly ran through the woods. Normally being carried while he ran was enjoyable, now that I had grown accustomed to it, but I couldn't enjoy the experience with tears streaming down my face. Instead, I snuggled into him, trying unsuccessfully to push the nightmare away.

After only a couple of minutes, as I continued to cry into Edward's chest, I felt him shift me gently to one arm so he could use the other to open a door. Through my watery eyes, I could see a blurry outline of the Cullens' home - my other home. I was momentarily distracted as I realized we were the only ones in the big house.

I opened my mouth to ask where everyone was but Edward quickly said, "They are all out hunting."

Sometimes, even though Edward couldn't read my mind, I wondered how he knew exactly what I was thinking. One time I had asked him.

He had grinned and said, "I may not be able to read your mind, love, but your face is quite easy to read sometimes, especially your eyes."

Thanks to the distraction of the empty house, my tears had halted again. Edward ran up to his room and sat me down on his black leather couch, cuddled up in his lap.

In the light of a waning moon, Edward looked down at me trying to discern from my eyes what was really bothering me. I tried to start talking to him, but every time I tried to say something, the tears would threaten to return. The dream hit me with the horrible realization that even though Edward wanted me now, there was no way he was going to want me when I became the dried up and old version of myself I had seen in my dream. As much as I was trying to convince myself that the woman in my dream was Gram, I knew better. It was me.

The longer I remained silent, the more pain I saw in Edward's eyes. He knew that my nightmare had been significant and that it was causing me serious grief.

Finally, I choked out, "Birthdays suck," and my tears started again, although not with the intensity that they had been at Charlie's.

Edward murmured into my hair, just loud enough that I could hear him, "What happened love?"

Through my tears, I finally stumbled through an explanation, and then told him my fears of losing him after I had aged. After explaining, I finally hinted that we could solve it by me becoming a vampire.

When I finally finished, Edward started down into my eyes with his golden ones, and then softly and tenderly said, "Love, your age will never change my feelings for you, but I cannot take your life away. I love you too much to turn you into a monster."

At Edward's words, I broke down into tears again, realizing that no matter how much I wanted it, he was never really going to give me forever with him. Edward whispered my name soothingly, willing the tears to stop.

"Bella, you know how much I love you, right?" Edward said to me, as he looked down with his eyes blazing at me, full of emotion.

I began to formulate an answer, but Edward must have seen my comment about his unwillingness to change me in my eyes. His topaz eyes seemed to be literally scorching through me as his hand went to my mouth, to silence my unspoken statement. After another moment of his burning gaze, he moved his hand away from my mouth at lightning speed. I saw a flash of resolution in his eyes, and then suddenly his mouth was crushing passionately into mine.

Edward had never kissed me this way. Not even the night that I had left for Phoenix with Alice and Jasper. This kiss had an edge of desperation and longing that I had never felt from Edward before. It was almost as if Edward was trying to communicate how much he loved me and wanted me with him, but also would not take my humanity, all in that single kiss. I responded eagerly as he kissed me with the desperate abandon. Suddenly, I felt Edward lift me up while continuing to kiss me thoroughly. He rapidly rotated my body so that I was straddling him. Then Edward wrapped one arm around my back, pulling me against his chest. His other hand tangled into my hair, as he continued to kiss me with as much intensity as he could without hurting me. I was starting to get lightheaded, so I pushed Edward away to catch my breath. I expected him to stop and reposition me once I broke the kiss. Our current position was already breaking his carefully set rules.

Edward looked into my eyes briefly and the glowing in his eyes intensified. He took in a quick, shocked breath, and then pushed the air back out in a growl as he moved his face down to my neck at a speed that no human could quite pull off. As Edward moved down to the base of my neck, I felt him attempt to push my sweater out of the way, only to then pull back in annoyance and aggravation. His eyes connected with mine again briefly and then my thick green sweater was in shreds on the floor. With an enthused look in his eyes, his mouth was back hungrily on my lower neck. I could only imagine the amount of control he was using to kiss me where the blood flow was so evident just beneath my skin. As he held me closely, I felt my whole body shake, slightly from the sudden chill of being left in just a tank top, but mostly from the amazing sensation of Edward's mouth on my skin.

Instantly, I was sitting on the couch alone. However just as my mind registered that fact, Edward was back and I was in his arms again with his lips moving on mine. I felt and heard the heater turn on and realized his decision to turn on the heat was one of surrender. He was not going to stop kissing me anytime soon and his careful rules were out the window for the moment. I wondered how long for a moment, before he captured my lips with his as his boundaries fell away.

I lay on the floor in his arms, covered with blanket that had been draped over the now destroyed couch. I found the destruction funny; Edward had no sense of humor regarding the destruction his supernatural strength had caused.

I finally got tired of his brooding attitude and said, "Edward, after holding back for so long and all your concern about injuring me the fact that the only casualty is your couch is amusing. Face it."

Edward grimaced and responded, "I was able to channel the excess energy into the couch destruction however it could have easily been you love."

I rolled my eyes at his excessive brooding and examined the couch in more detail. The legs were snapped from the frame, The back was detached from the seat and it looked like a couple of the cushions were ripped into. After a moment, I realized that the cushions on the back of the couch looked like they had been bitten.

I stifled a laugh and slowly said, "Edward, did you bite the cushions?"

Edward looked back at me sheepishly and then took a breath in to speak. Before he could get a word out I started laughing. After a moment, Edward chuckled and then rolled his eyes at me.

Once I gained control, he sobered and said, "Love I could have just as easily bitten you. You would be in the middle of transformation instead of enjoying the endorphin rush."

I wiggled back into his arms and he willing wrapped his body around mine. I used his upper arm as a stone pillow and said, "I don't think you could have hurt me. You love me too much to ever hurt me."

He looked down at me and didn't say a word.

We had been laying there for a while, wrapped in each other's arms, staring at each other lovingly, when I felt Edward scoop me up and carefully lay me down on the remains of the couch. Edward then lowered himself next to me, bending the protruding nails with the weight of his body, wrapping his arms around me.

Softly, with his sweetest and most velvety voice he said, "I love you my Bella. Happy Birthday."

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	2. Chapter 2 Party Time

**A/N: There is a ton of stuff going on in this rather long chapter. I tried breaking it up but it just didn't feel right so you all have plenty to read.**

**Please hit that lil review button when your done and let me know what you think!**

**Enjoy **

Chapter 2- Party time

Eventually, Edward and I had to come back to the real world. We saw the first rays of light beginning to brighten the sky, and I came back to my senses. I sat up on his couch like a bolt of lightning. Charlie was going to be awake soon, and if I wasn't home, in bed, when he woke up, we would have serious problems. Edward looked at me with a puzzled expression and I responded by saying my dad's name. Edward grinned at me and moved in a blur from the couch to a pile of shredded material that had been my clothes. I realized that of the clothing I came over in, I only had a bra and tank top that were still wearable. Edward grinned like a kid on Christmas morning when he realized that my clothes were completely unsalvageable. Just then, Edward's phone began to buzz across the desk.

Edward grabbed his phone and groaned when he saw the number. Before he flipped open his phone to answer the call, he grumbled Alice's name with an eye roll and then started talking to his dark haired sister; he spoke so quickly I couldn't understand him. In a matter of 30 seconds, Edward was back off the phone again and moving around his room in a blur. I looked at him, trying to figure out what was so urgent. After a few seconds of watching him move almost too fast for the human eye, I said his name.

Edward turned to me quickly and rushed out, "Charlie's waking up early, and is going to check on you. We have to get you back to your house now."

Then, I was back in Edward's arms and he dressed me completely before I realized what was happening. I looked down and saw that I was wearing a similar sweater to the green one that Edward had destroyed, only this sweater fit as if it was knitted for me, and the exact same jeans. I realized that this had taken some planning, and also who had known what was going to happen. I hissed out Alice's name as if it was a swear word.

Edward flitted over to me, laughed, and scooped me up in his arms.

"I wondered why she had been keeping me out of her head for the last few days. She has been singing constantly in her mind, and translating them into other languages," Edward explained with an adorable and goofy grin, which had spread across his whole face. "Alice is the one who suggested the hunting trip knowing that I wouldn't want to go due to your birthday. I am sure that they are all having a good laugh at our expense. Especially Emmett," as Edward spoke he looked down at me as if he had just seen the sun for the first time and it made me realize how incredibly lucky I was to have my wonderful angel in my life.

However, his statement made me groan. This would mean that by now, the whole family knew we were no longer virgins. My face will be constantly blushing for weeks.

Once we flew through my bedroom window, I hurriedly tried to get undressed and into my pajamas, but after a moment, Edward rushed over and in less than a second helped me finish.

Then I saw my bed skirt flutter and I heard Edward hiss out, "Bella get in bed now!"

I ran across the room and threw myself in bed. The moment I had my covers up and over me, I heard the door handle begin to jiggle.

I was far too excited to fake sleep with any amount of skill so I decided to act as if I was awake, but not out of bed yet. Charlie opened the door and looked surprised to see me lying in bed with my eyes open. I flashed Charlie a smile, hoping that he wouldn't notice how keyed up I was.

"Hey, dad!" I said energetically.

"Happy Birthday, Bells," Charlie stammered out.

Since he seemed so shocked that I was awake, I thought I needed to explain why I was already up before he started to get suspicious.

"I woke up a couple minutes ago. I think I am just so ready for this day to be over with that I wanted to get it started," I brightly said to my father with a hint of playful annoyance.

Birthdays were not my favorite thing because of all the attention they focused on me. I knew my father would completely understand, having similar feelings about his birthday. Add in the dream from last night and I was definitely not looking forward to my birthday. It meant that from now on I was going to be older than Edward, time marching on for me, pulling us further and further apart. I think the fact that most of my statement was true kept Charlie from detecting the lie that I told him - since one part of this birthday was the most memorable experience I had ever had in my life, and one I was sure to treasure always. Charlie let me know that he would be downstairs, and then shut my door.

Before I could turn around, I heard Edward escape from the small space under my bed. I turned around and moved as fast as I could, and snuggled back into his waiting and outstretched arms. Edward pulled me eagerly to him and we sat together for a few minutes until I heard my stomach grumble.

"Love, you should really go get something to eat," Edward gently said to me in response to my stomach's audible announcement of my appetite.

I frowned unhappily, not wanting to leave his arms to satisfy my stomach and said, "Nope, I just want to sit here with you."

Edward chuckled, gently squeezed me and said with a grin, "I know, love. I would be happy to sit here all day with you, but you need to eat and I need to go get ready for school. I'll be back the second Charlie leaves."

He smiled down at me as his eyes danced, sparkling with apparent joy. I wrapped my arms around him even tighter and said, "After last night… well this morning, I don't think I want to ever let you out of my sight again. I know it's silly, but I can hardly stand the idea of you walking away, even for a few minutes."

Edward squeezed me slightly and said, "I know, love. I don't want to leave this room either but we need to get ready for school. I can't wear the same thing I did yesterday."

Edward leaned down, kissed me sweetly, and then disentangled himself from me, setting me on my bed. At the loss of Edward's presence, I felt my face turn into a pout without my consent. Edward looked back through the window after he climbed out, and flashed a huge smile at me as he blew me a silly and theatrical kiss before disappearing from view.

After Edward left and some of my excitement wore away, I did have to admit that I was rather hungry and tired thanks to my late night activities. I stumbled down the stairs and into the kitchen to pour myself a bowl of cereal. My mind was across town with Edward and it took me a moment to realize that Charlie was talking to me.

"Yah, dad?" I asked, once I realized that he was speaking.

"Bella, you're a million miles away. I was just trying to say that I know you don't like birthdays much Bells, but, happy birthday," Charlie said slightly awkwardly.

Charlie was holding out two gifts towards me. I groaned, rolling my eyes and reluctantly taking my gifts with the skill of a practiced martyr.

I opened up the first gift, which was skillfully wrapped in bright paper with a large, artful bow. I knew immediately without looking further who the gift was from. It had Renee's unique style and class all over it. Inside there was a beautiful, empty scrapbook. I examined it and smiled slightly to myself. It was such a Renee gift. Then I turned my attention to the other gift. It was sloppily wrapped and had a slightly squished pre-made bow in the corner. Again, no card needed to tell me who was giving me this gift. It screamed Charlie. I was surprised that he had actually gotten a bow on it. I ripped the paper open to find a new camera. My mouth opened into a small "O" shape.

I sputtered out, "Wow Ch-dad you really didn't have to do this, but I love it!"

As I waited for Charlie to leave, I spent the time going over how my new camera worked to distract myself.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door and I saw a familiar shape through the glass. Apparently, Edward couldn't wait any longer to see me either. I flung the door open and threw myself into Edward's arms, not caring that Charlie was being forced to witness my display of affection.

Edward leaned down and whispered in my ear so softly that only I could hear, "Happy Birthday love."

Then I heard Charlie clearing his throat behind me, obviously reaching the limits of his patience for our display. I let my arms down, took one of Edward's hands, and faced Charlie.

Edward greeted Charlie politely, but my dad merely nodded in return and started to turn away before Edward spoke up again, "Charlie, would it be alright with you if Bella came over this evening? My family wants to have a birthday party for her."

I groaned and silently mouthed the word no at my dad, trying to get him to say he would rather have me spend the evening with him.

A mischievous grin spread over Charlie's face and then he said, "Nah, I'll just be watching the ball game anyway. Bells, if they are doing something fun over at the Cullens' for you, you should go."

I rolled my eyes and muttered, "Traitor," under my breath, before I turned and walked out to the door with Edward.

Edward looked at me with obvious amusement at my reply to my dad's betrayal and then softly laughed, dragging me out the door with him.

Edward had given my dad an excuse about needing to be at school early this morning when we left, but now I wanted to know why my gorgeous boyfriend had come to get me early. I looked at Edward with a curious expression and when he looked over at me, he laughed and grinned, shaking his head as he read my unspoken question from my expression. We drove up to his house and parked the car in the garage. I started to head up towards the house but Edward caught my attention with his lips. I reeled, thinking only incoherent thoughts about how fabulous a kisser my Edward was.

Finally, as I was getting dizzy, Edward's lips left mine and he huskily said, "Bella, do you have any idea how much I truly love you?"

I gave him a huge smile and his eyes began to burn into me. Before I knew it, I was in Edward's arms and he was running into the forest kissing me in a way that should be illegal.

We reached a small clearing in the woods; Edward stopped running and shifted me so I was standing in front of him. Suddenly, I needed him all over again. I threw my arms around him, kissing him with all my might. Edward gasped as I did this, and threw himself into the kiss with equal passion. However, before the kiss was allowed to develop further, I heard a twig snap and someone clear their throat behind us. Edward looked over my shoulder and rolled his eyes at our intruder. I whipped around quickly to see who had ruined our moment, when I saw Alice skipping over towards us. Apparently, the family was home from their hunting trip.

"Ok lovebirds, we need to get to school and if you two start that up again there is no way we are going to see a classroom until this afternoon, if ever," Alice joked with us.

Edward rolled his eyes again and said, "Alice I don't understand how someone so small could be-"

Alice and I interrupted in unison with, "-so hugely irritating."

With that, Alice and I were in a fit of giggles. I turned to Edward who was looking at both of us with mock annoyance and kissed him lightly. Then Edward grinned down at me and scooped me up in his arms running back toward the house.

Thanks to my lack of sleep the night before, the school day passed quickly. I had most of my classes with Edward and I spent them staring at him, eager for the school day to end so I could have more time with him. In my classes without Edward, I fell asleep due to my exhaustion levels. Mr. Varner assigned me detention for sleeping in class and so I completely missed the crowded lunchroom and all the extra attention from my classmates due to my birthday. I didn't mind detention in the slightest, especially when Edward wandered in, carrying my lunch and somehow dazzling Mr. Varner to allow him to stay with me.

I had gym class at the end of the day. Edward had begged and pleaded with Ms. Cope to be in my gym class, using his most convincing moves, and Ms. Cope was eventually able to get him in. I was looking forward to having time with Edward. We were doing our mandatory dance class and I knew that without Edward as my partner it would have been a nightmare. After last night, I was already sore enough.

Throughout the day, my body had progressively become achier in protest to the awkward positions I had put it in last night. I walked out into the gym after dressing out into my gym shorts and short sleeved t-shirt and searched the room for Edward. My eyes finally found his and a huge smile flashed across his face. However, in a split second, his eyes went wide with panic and worry as he hurried over to me, a little too fast for normal human speed. As soon as he reached me, his face went from a look of worry to agony, and self-disgust.

I looked up into his beautiful concerned face and softly said, "Edward, what's wrong?"

Edward stared at me in disbelief for a moment and then he harshly said, "Bella did you look in a mirror before you walked out here?"

I stepped back, looked into his face, and slowly shook my head no.

"Bella, I am so sorry. I can't believe I did this to you. You're covered in bruises, love. I-" Edward got choked up, and was unable to speak further.

I looked down at my arms and legs and saw the deep purple marks that were developing all over my body. I started to panic and my brain went wild in many different directions. After a moment, I knew that the first thing I needed to do was calm Edward down.

"Edward?" I questioned softly.

In an agonizingly broken voice he said, "Yes, love?"

I wrapped one arm around him and used the other to adjust his face so that he was looking into my eyes.

Then, with as much emotion and care as I could muster, I said, "Love, please, please, please don't stress about this. I bruise very easily. Usually once a bruise shows up, I have forgotten where it came from. Don't blame yourself. Considering it was our very first time, I think we did exceptionally well. I would not trade last night for anything in the world and although I am a bit stiff and sore from the um- exercise, it feels like I spent an hour at the gym. Edward really I'm fine. Last night was the best night of my life."

Edward looked down at me his eyes raging with conflict. Before Edward could reply however, our PE coach, Coach Clapp, decided to get the class started.

Edward sat on the gym floor, still deep in thought. I sat in front of him and used him to lean on while we listened to the instruction from our teacher. Edward lightly wrapped his arms around me, being extremely careful not to put any amount of pressure on me. I turned to face him for a moment, rolled my eyes at his excessive restraint and used my arms to wrap his around me more securely. Edward complied but did not hold me any tighter than I forced him to. I started to get annoyed, but I hoped that after we talked more he would stop being melodramatic about a few bruises.

Once we were on our feet and gliding across the gym floor, Edward looked down at me with his eyes burning with a confusing mix of emotion. I gave him the warmest, most loving look I could and then snuggled against him as we danced, until Edward pushed us into a more formal stance. I looked up at Edward quizzically as a small version of my favorite smile danced across his lips and in his eyes, mingling with the other emotions that were still swimming there.

Edward finally said softly, "Coach Clapp is thinking about coming over here and separating us, apparently we look like we are having too much fun."

I smiled up at him as a small giggle escaped my lips.

Edward gave me a frustrated look and said, "Well now you've done it, love, he's coming over here to switch our partners."

The coach walked over and separated Mike, Jessica, and us. Mike took me in his arms a little too eagerly and Jessica looked thrilled at the idea of dancing with Edward.

I put a martyred look on my face for Edward, and then looked back towards my new partner. Mike was not the dancer Edward was, and so we moved awkwardly across the floor. Suddenly behind me, I heard Edward growl quietly and my eyes went searching for him. However, at that moment, my feet tripped Mike up and we both ended up on the floor in a heap. My forehead found Mike's left shoe on the way down and I winced at the knot that was going to accompany my newest injury. Edward stopped dancing with Jessica and looked ready to murder Mike and rush me out of there all at once.

Edward carefully helped me off the floor and looked into my eyes.

"Bella, I think we need to get you to Carlisle to make sure you're ok love," Edward said hurriedly as the coach came over to assess the situation.

"Maybe I should have left you with Edward, Bella," Coach jokingly said as he looked at my head. "I think you'll be ok, but I am going to send you to the nurse to make sure," Coach Clap said dismissively as he walked away.

Edward followed the coach and then requested that he be allowed to accompany me to the nurse. Coach Clapp laughed and made a remark about Edward accompanying me no matter what he said. Edward gave him a hard smile and nodded his head.

After changing out of our gym clothes, Edward walked me to the office and up to Ms. Cope's desk.

Using one of his award winning smiles on her, he said softly, in his most alluring voice, "Ms. Cope, Bella hit her head in gym and I would be more comfortable having my father check her out. Would you mind excusing us for the rest of the day?"

Ms. Cope smiled broadly at my dazzling boyfriend and gushed, "Of course dear."

Edward then put his arm around my back and walked me out of the office to his car.

The drive to the hospital was a silent one. I looked at Edward a few times, trying to start a conversation, but the look in his eyes told me that he was not ready to talk. Once we arrived at the hospital, Edward escorted me to Carlisle's office. Edward knocked on the door and said something so soft that I could not hear it. After a brief pause, Edward opened the door and ushered me in.

One extremely awkward conversation and embarrassingly full examination later, we walked back to Edward's car. Edward had insisted on having Carlisle make sure that I had not sustained any other injuries besides the visible ones from our first time together. I was surprised completely when Carlisle agreed with him with a concerned look on his face. I finally acquiesced when I realized that it would get Edward to relax and be more willing to touch me again. The look of overwhelming worry was gone from Edward's face since Carlisle had told him that I was completely fine, and the bruises were the only injury I had sustained from our activities of the night before. Edward kept one hand on the wheel while he drove and wrapped the other one around my shoulders in a loose hug. We fell into easy and light conversation as we drove to Charlie's house.

I jokingly asked Edward why he had growled at Mike. He groaned, and reluctantly told me, "Mike's fantasies were screaming in my head. I growled in response to one particularly vile idea he had involving a school dance and too much alcohol."

I giggled as I responded, "Poor Mike is going to be crushed if he ever gets it through his thick skull that I would never be involved with him like that."

I told Edward that I needed to watch Romeo and Juliet for English before we went over to his family's house. I knew that I wasn't going to get out of the party, however, I was trying to delay it for as long as possible.

I cuddled into Edward as we lay together on the small couch. Before long, I could not concentrate on the movie. I turned to face Edward, who had a longing look in his eyes. I quickly pressed my lips into his and wrapped my arms around his neck. Edward kissed me back eagerly. His hands started to wander all over my body, pulling me close into him. Edward's hand happened to move across one of my worst bruises and I involuntarily flinched. Edward immediately released me from his grasp and stopped kissing me.

"Edward, I'm fine. Don't stop," I said as fast as I could with obvious desire.

Edward looked at me, torn between lust and fear, not wanting to cause me any more pain.

Then a flash of resolution moved across his icy pale face and he slowly said, "Bella, I am not saying we will never make love again, but I will not make love to you until the bruises heal. I don't want cause you any more discomfort."

I pouted and attempted to wiggle back into his arms.

Edward laughed and said, "Love, I know. I want you too, but I want to keep you safe even more. Please just wait a few days."

Then suddenly Edward sat us both up, keeping hold of my hand only. I said Charlie's name and Edward gave a small smile and nodded.

I turned my attention back to the movie, trying to be caught up so that when Charlie came in, I would seem engrossed in the film. Charlie came in the door with an audible sigh meant for Edward, further demonstrating the theme of 'unwelcome' that Charlie constantly felt the need to share after last spring's disastrous trip to Phoenix. Even though I constantly reminded Charlie that the trip to Phoenix and my resulting injuries were my fault, Charlie seemed to place all the blame on Edward. I rolled my eyes at my dad's audible display of annoyance, and Edward winked at me before greeting my father.

"Good afternoon Charlie," Edward said with complete ease and respect.

Charlie grumbled out something that sounded like 'hi' and shuffled into the room.

Charlie turned to me and said with more animation, "Hey, Bells."

I smiled up at my dad and returned his hello.

Before I got any further, Edward said, "Charlie, we will be leaving as soon as we finish the movie. I won't keep her out too late. Would you like to join us?"

Charlie looked at Edward hard for a moment, obviously warring internally with his hatred for parties and his desire to keep his own eyes on both of us to make sure we stayed out of trouble.

"Nah, I think I'll stay here and watch the game. I'm not a big fan of parties. Bella, don't worry about dinner, I'm in the mood for pizza," he answered.

I turned my attention back to the movie, just in time for the scene where Juliet wakes up to find Romeo dead beside her. I saw Edward watching me from the corner of my eye.

"As much as I don't agree with Romeo on many counts, I know that I could not live in a world where you don't exist," he told me sincerely.

The passion and conviction of his statement shocked me. I wanted to say something, but Edward pointed towards the stairs and I saw Charlie come down them a moment later. After we completed the movie, Edward and I said goodbye to Charlie and walked out to his Volvo. Edward drove, and after a few minutes I realized that we were not headed to his house, but to our meadow. When he pulled off the road, I looked at him and he smiled. Before I could open my mouth, Edward had scooped me up in his arms and we were moving at a speed only my gorgeous vampire could manage. I loved the feeling of flying through the forest in his arms. Every time we made this run, I remembered the first time we had come here and Edward had decided he wanted me more than he wanted my blood.

When we arrived in our meadow, Edward set me down in the grass and said, "Stay here, love. I'll be right back."

Then he kissed me quickly and flew out of sight. I stood there for a few moments, taking in the beauty of our meadow. Even without the sun, our meadow was beautiful and calming. After a moment, I got tired of standing and sank down into the grass. As I sat, I swept my fingers across the tips of the lush blanket of emerald turf. Behind me, I heard a soft and familiar laugh. I whipped my head around and saw Edward looking at me with his eyes warm and full of adoration. I stopped breathing when I saw him as I realized, yet again, how amazingly lucky I was to have this perfect creature in my life.

"Bella, love, please stand up and close your eyes," my Edward softly said.

I smiled at him and complied. I heard a slight wind and could feel Edward near me but I resisted the urge to open my eyes and look at him.

Finally, Edward took my hand and said, "Open your eyes my Bella."

I fluttered my eyes open to see Edward on one knee in front of me, looking up with eyes that were scorching into mine and full of love. I suddenly got nervous. Edward was on one knee and he seemed nervous too. I audibly gulped and Edward laughed quickly.

Then, he rushed out, "Bella I need to ask you something but I want you to listen closely and not make assumptions until I finish ok? I need you to know that this has nothing to do with me turning you into a vampire. That is not what we are discussing here. I will not doom you to my fate."

I nodded, not able to talk. Wild thoughts were running through my head and it did not escape my attention that he was on one knee, typical stance for a boy about to propose. My mouth dropped open in a small 'o' as I waited, almost breathlessly, for Edward to talk.

"Bella, I love you with every fiber of my being. You are my life and purpose now. I cannot imagine not having you in my life. I do not know what miracle brought you into my existence, but I am incredibly thankful for it. Bella, I want to spend the rest of my time on this earth loving you. I am asking you to promise to be mine for the rest of our lives. I am asking you to wear a promise ring from me. Will you, love?" Edward said as he looked up at me, his eyes shining with hope and love.

I looked down at him in shock. I didn't know how to process this. He wanted me to marry him. I gulped at the idea. I loved him with every part of me and knew there would never be anyone else for me. If he was saying what I thought he was, I was glad that he had not straight out proposed. I was not ready to get married and my mother had some very strong opinions about marriage, especially right out of high school. I knew that she did not want me to follow in her footsteps. He waited patiently for me to think. Finally, I was able to work out what I wanted to say. I knew what my answer would be but I needed to make sure that I was responding to the question he was actually asking me.

So I took a deep breath and said as evenly as possible, "Edward, you are not asking me to marry you now but for me to promise to marry you at some point. This is a promise ring and not an engagement ring, correct?"

I pointed to the small square shaped bulge in his front pants pocket. Edward smiled warmly at me and nodded. I took another moment, silently rejoicing that he hadn't proposed. I knew I would have had to say no to that because I didn't want to get married at eighteen, and Renee would kill me. However, I knew I wanted to be his wife, someday - a someday that was in the not too distant future, but not today.

I took a deep breath and smiled at my wonderful Edward.

"Edward-" I realized that I was going to get very mushy on him, and I didn't want to embarrass myself in that way, but I didn't want to come off as joking, so I hastily rethought my response.

Edward looked at me with a worried expression forming in his eyes. I knew I had to respond quickly, before he started thinking that I was going to say no.

Therefore, I smiled at him again and softly said, "Yes, love, I promise to be yours."

Edward's face blossomed into the most breath-taking smile I had ever seen. It was triumphant and victorious. It was like a bright, dawn sunrise after a newly fallen snow. Edward threw his arms around me and swung me around, while pressing his lips to mine. He only stopped when I pushed away to catch a breath before I passed out.

Slowly, he put me down and pulled a small black velvet box from the front pocket of his perfectly fitted, casual, gray khaki pants. He opened the box slowly and turned it to face me. Inside the black cushioned box, glittering in the diffuse light coming through the cloud cover, was a gorgeous ring. It was white gold or silver with rows of diamonds set in an oval. It was perfect and delicate and exactly the right thing for me. I looked up at Edward for more information.

Edward smiled at me and softly said, "It was my mother's engagement ring. I will get you your own engagement ring, but I thought this was fitting for your promise ring because I know how you like personal gifts."

I could not get words out of my mouth, so I threw my arms around his neck and pressed myself against him. Edward smiled, and then crushed his lips into mine. We kissed for a long time, only pausing so that I could get air. However as much as I pushed for things to go further, Edward kept us from anything other than amazing kisses and kept reminding me that he didn't want to hurt me anymore than he already had.

Eventually I felt Edward's cell phone vibrate in his pocket as we continued to kiss. Edward sighed and answered it, reluctantly pulling his lips away from mine. Even with my imperfect human hearing, I could hear Alice yelling at her brother through the phone that he needed to get home and that we were ridiculously late. Edward smiled at me, collected me into his arms, and ran back to his car.

In fewer minutes than I thought possible, we were back at Edward's house. No matter how many times I had seen the Cullen's home, I fell in love with it every time I returned. It was the perfect symbol of who the Cullens were as a family. However, as much as I loved Edward's family, I was not looking forward to a birthday party where all of the attention was centered on me. I groaned as Edward pulled the car into the garage.

"Do we have to go in?" I looked at him with a small pout.

Edward smiled at me and said, "Bella, I need you to do me a favor. The last real birthday any of us had was Emmett in the 1930's. Please cut them some slack, they are all really excited. Oh, and when I say all, I mean all of them."

My eyes went wide. Emmett and Rosalie were supposed to be in Africa on another honeymoon.

Edward squeezed my hand and said, "Rose will be on her best behavior today, don't worry, love. They also know that I was going to give you a promise ring, so don't worry about the family assuming too much."

I put a grimace on my face, and with my most reluctant voice I said, "Alright Edward, let's get this stupid party over with."

Edward laughed and took my hand, pulling me toward the house.

It was much worse than I had imagined. Alice had gone completely overboard. There were pink and white decorations everywhere, including an over-the-top pink birthday cake with glass plates on Edward's piano. Next to the ridiculous cake was a small stack of presents and even more candles and roses. It seemed like every spare inch of the room was covered in birthday decorations and regalia. I looked very pointedly at Alice and shot her a look full of daggers. My best friend was across the room in her husband's arms, practically vibrating from the happy energy radiating out of her. This was what she loved to do best. I had a slight suspicion that it was also my best friend living vicariously through me, making up for all the birthday experiences she could not remember as a human. Esme and Carlisle came over and hugged me in turn.

Carlisle said in an extremely fake serious tone, "Sorry about all this Bella, we just couldn't rein Alice in."

I rolled my eyes at my future father-in-law. I giggled slightly to myself at the new idea of Carlisle as a more official part of my family, and the step that had been taken to start to change that relationship.

After a moment, I felt all eyes on Edward and me.

After an awkwardly silent pause, Emmett spoke up, "Well, what happened? Alice won't tell us!"

Edward laughed, took my hand that now held his mother's ring and brought it up to his lips, kissing the ring that was now mine. Then he held my hand purposefully so the small and delicate ring threw light around the room. Suddenly everyone was hugging me. Even Rosalie hugged me, although the look of total annoyance at my existence never left her face. Even Jasper braved a slight hug that had so little pressure behind it that, had I been a bubble, I would not have popped. It was the first time since Phoenix that Jasper had come near me and it did not last long. The pained expression that was usually on his face was momentarily worsened by the familiar contact he had just shared with me. I appreciated the obvious difficulty it was for Jasper to give me that simple show of sisterly affection and I flashed him a huge smile, letting him know I appreciated his effort. For a quick moment, Jasper nervously grinned back, before his pained and tortured expression slipped back on his face.

Alice then interrupted with, "Bella it's time for you to open your presents!"

She was barely able to keep her speech slow enough for me to understand.

Suddenly Rose stepped forward with a grin, and said, "Ours first, Alice," as she handed me a box, wrapped in silver paper.

I opened it up and found an empty stereo box. I looked up at Emmett, Rosalie and Jasper with a puzzled expression.

Emmett laughed and said, "We got you a new stereo for your truck. I installed it while you were watching Romeo and Juliet this afternoon, that way you can't return it."

I laughed at Emmett's statement. Alice was always one-step ahead of me. She knew I would not willingly accept such an extravagant gift if I had a choice. I put a very goofy fake grin on my face and thanked them. They all laughed and Alice took the box out of my hands, replacing it with a small square package, wrapped in the same thick silver paper.

I stuck my finger under the edge of the paper, yanking it open with my finger. The thick wrapping paper sunk into my skin, leaving a rather large paper cut. I yanked my hand out to examine the damage. I saw one small drop of blood form on my finger and suddenly I was flying backwards, towards the floor, as Edward put himself between me and Jasper's razor-sharp, venom-coated teeth, which were suddenly inches away. As I hit the ground, I felt something warm underneath me. I looked quickly and realized that we had run into the piano, and all of the glass plates had fallen onto the floor and shattered. I had sliced my arm open on the fragments when Edward knocked me to the ground, protecting me from Jasper. Everything happened so quickly that my body had yet to register the pain. I tried to get myself back together and focused on Edward, but the overwhelming smell and sight of that much of my own blood was too much for me and I fell into blackness.

In the darkness of my mind, I screamed out for Edward repeatedly until my mental voice was completely exhausted. I was searching the darkness for my love, frantically feeling his presence, but not finding his face. Then suddenly, the panic grew, because I could no longer feel Edward's presence with me and I began to scream. Finally, I felt a pressure in my fingers, was able to respond, and slowly blinked my eyes open.

I looked up into Charlie's worried face. I was lying in a hospital bed, being taken care of by a concerned nurse. I looked around the room frantically for Edward, but did not find him or any of the Cullen family, which was very strange. I could not imagine Edward leaving my side when I had passed out from an injury, unless the scent of my blood had pushed him too far. With that thought reassuring me, I looked towards the door expectantly, waiting for Carlisle to come through it. The nurse hurried out of the room mumbling something to Charlie about going to find the doctor, so I sat up slightly and took in my surroundings.

I was sitting on a bed in the hospital ER. My injured arm was completely bandaged up and I was still wearing my clothes. My shirt was completely ruined, covered in blood and frosting. The sight of my blood made me slightly woozy, but I forced myself to ignore it. I was quite a mess, but I had definitely had worse. I smiled up at Charlie reassuringly. He looked at me with a troubled expression and hugged me to him. Something was wrong in Charlie's eyes. I couldn't pinpoint what was causing such a distressing expression on his face; I knew he was worried about me getting hurt, but this went beyond that. I couldn't put my finger on it. Then, just beyond the curtain that was obstructing my view, I heard someone shuffling towards me, going through some papers. I looked up, pleasantly waiting for Carlisle to come around the curtain.

I was disappointed when I saw Dr. Gerandy come around the corner carrying my chart. Something in the back of my mind, which was still fuzzy, told me that this was not a good sign. Carlisle should have been the one taking care of me. Edward would have wanted his father to make sure I was all right because he knew Carlisle would be thorough. I was sure Dr. Gerandy was a great doctor, but he did not have the superhuman powers that Carlisle did. I realized that having Carlisle taking care of me had made me slightly spoiled. Again, I was struck with the absence of my favorite doctor. Something had gone very wrong after I passed out. I was anxious to find out what was happening with my other family and why none of them were here to make sure I was ok. I was suddenly very worried and frightened.

Before I had time to ask however, the doctor addressed me, "Well young lady it was quite a chore getting all that glass out of your arm. Good reason for you to stay away from glass plates. Your arm will be just fine. I will give you a couple light painkillers to help you sleep the next couple of nights. I am also going to send home care instructions to make sure the wound is properly tended."

Dr. Gerandy reached out to shake my hand before leaving. As I reached out towards him, I looked down at my good hand and stopped breathing. My ring, the one that Edward had put on my finger only hours before, was missing. Eyes wide, I looked at my dad for an answer and his expression told me that I was never going to be okay again. I gasped in air and a scream ripped from my throat as the world briefly went black again.

**Reviewers get Edward's thin but expensive black shirt ;)**


	3. Chapter 3 Gone

**A/N: This chapter is really short on purpose and since it's short I decided to give it to you early **

**I really want reviews please... I'm trying to work on my writing so feedback would be awesome.**

**Thanks for reviewing and following my story **

Chapter 3- Gone

I spent the next four days in complete and utter agony. No one knew why Carlisle had quit his job when he dropped me off at the hospital that night. The Cullens did not show up at school, and the beautiful house hidden in the forest was empty. The cars and personal items were gone, but the furniture was there, covered up with sheets, already collecting a thin layer of dust. I had been to the house once, the day after the accident, hoping that somehow Edward or another member of the family would be waiting for me, or that there would be a note explaining where they had gone. When I found nothing there besides the furniture, I was paralyzed with painful grief. I agonized over why they would leave without telling me, and why Edward would take my ring. The only possible reason I could come up with for Edward taking my ring that didn't tear my heart apart was the idea that Edward wouldn't want to cause me too many problems with Charlie until he was here to help explain. I had no reason for why they would leave without me unless they were in serious danger, or they really had left me behind. The second idea was more than I could handle. I wasn't able to stop sobbing long enough to leave their house for hours, arriving home after twilight.

Three days after my accident, the two remaining Cullen high school students were officially withdrawn via a phone call. The school was buzzing all day about their abrupt and inexplicable departure. I fielded tons of questions all day but wasn't able to give them any more than they already knew. Every part of me told me that what was coming was extremely bad. The Cullens never would have removed themselves from school if they had planned to come back with any kind of permanence. They valued their human charade too much to risk pulling Alice and Edward out of school completely if they were planning on coming back. I was so confused because I knew Edward never would have left me without a single word if he had any choice at all. My brain ran over every scenario I could think of, each more impossible than the last. I cried myself to sleep that night and woke up an hour later screaming Edward's name.

The next day, as I came home from school, I anxiously checked the answering machine again, and then walked out to check the mailbox. I had argued with myself many times in the last few days, trying to figure out why in the world they had left without a word. I knew that they would have a hard time explaining their disappearance to anyone else. I was forcing myself to believe that their absence was temporary due to the incident with Jasper, and I consoled myself with the idea that they would contact me soon and come back the moment Jasper could handle it. I refused to think about the fact that my ring was gone after my extremely painful visit to the Cullens' home. I reached the mailbox and my heart skipped a beat as I found a large brown envelope inside. I flipped it over and my heart sang as I saw the familiar handwriting. It was from Edward. Finally, I would have the answers I desperately needed and would be able to figure out a game plan to get back to him as soon as possible.

I ran inside and tore the envelope open. Inside there was a CD that was sealed in a strange clear package. It took me a moment and then I realized that it was one of those new 2 day DVDs that had just shown up in a couple of the small convenience stores in Forks. I had never seen them used to record something other than a commercial DVD, usually containing the newest movie to be released to DVD, which was rarely worth wasting time on. With trembling fingers, I tore the package open and put the disc into my ancient computer. At this point, I noticed that a new DVD drive had been installed. My old one could only play certain discs; my heart beat slightly faster as I thought about who would have installed this and why.

The program seemed to take forever to load, but finally, my Edward's face was freeze framed on the screen. For a moment, I stared at the screen, rememorizing his gorgeous face that seemed to be twisted in an expression of pain. I wanted to go through the screen and take all his pain away. I tried to catch my breath and willed my heart to slow down before I pressed the play button on the screen.

After a moment, the DVD began to play and Edward's voice rang out with a flat, dead tone;

"Bella, my world is not a safe place for you. We need to stop pretending that lions and lambs can be together. Lions kill lambs and I refuse to be the one that ends your life. We have left Forks and I do not want you to come with us. Bella, I am not what you are, and I cannot continue to pretend to be something I am not. I am tired of the charade. I let this go on far too long. I am deeply sorry for everything I did and said that allowed you to care for me so much. I do not have the words to express how badly I feel about the 24 hours before your birthday party and all that I did to make you think I loved you right before I pulled myself out of your life. I never meant to hurt you, and I will never forgive myself for the pain I have caused you. I know that this will be hard for you Bella, but you will forget me and move on in time. This is the last time you will see or hear from me or any other member of our family. I will leave you without painful reminders so that you can have a clean break and move on. I am sorry to have to tell you this way, but we had to leave immediately before the questions started. Please be safe, Bella. Do not do anything foolish or stupid that would cause you to get hurt. Charlie needs you too much and you have a long life to look forward to. Be happy and forget me. Goodbye, my Bella."

I stared at his image in the screen without moving for what seemed like an eternity. Then, with silent tears streaming down my face, I hit the play button again. As I watched the recording the second time, one phrase stood out above all the rest - "I do not want you." As that statement sunk in, the overwhelming pain tore open a huge hole in my heart. I felt like I would never be completely whole again. Part of me went missing, and without him, I would never get it back.

The next forty-eight hours were agony. I watched the DVD over and over again, memorizing every aspect of his face and tone, desperately searching for something that would tell me he had been lying when he made the recording. As hard as I looked, I couldn't find anything to doubt. He really didn't love me and he didn't want me anymore. Slowly and agonizingly, the invisible hole in my chest grew and it felt like I couldn't breathe. At the end of forty-eight hours, the DVD became unplayable. I let the pain completely take me over and I did not resurface.

**Reviewers get a personal visit from Alice and get to ask her one question ;) What would your Alice question be?**


	4. Chapter 4 Nudge

**A/N: Just in case I forgot to say it, Twilight belongs to the wonderful and talented Stephenie Meyer. I'm just playing in her sandbox ****  
**

**This chapter was hard to write, I hope it came out better than I think it did…**

**Please let me know what you think!**

Chapter 4- Nudge

I was able to slightly focus on something else beyond the pain when I woke two weeks later. I knew something had caused me to wake up, but I was briefly distracted when I heard my mother's voice downstairs and wondered when Renee had shown up. I hadn't spoken to Charlie during the two days that I watched the DVD except to tell him to leave me alone. After the DVD stopped working, things became extremely fuzzy and my memory of the last couple weeks was a blur. The only clue I had of time passing was my mother's apparent arrival and the date on my alarm clock. I didn't know when Charlie had called my mother. However, all these thoughts were quickly interrupted as an intense wave of nausea overcame me and I threw myself towards the bathroom. Even when a heart is broken, you have to respond to things like a sick stomach.

After my stomach had violently emptied itself, I washed out my mouth and opened the bathroom door to find myself face to face with my mother. She looked at me and threw her arms around me. Suddenly I was crying again, against her. She helped me walk back to my room as I bawled, ruining her shirt with my tears. I don't know how long I sat there and cried but eventually I got hungry.

I looked up into the very worried face of my mother and said, "Mom, I'm hungry. Can I get something to eat?"

She hugged me tighter. "Sure baby, I'll be right back."

She crawled off my bed and walked out of my room, closing the door quietly behind her. The numbness was threatening to take over again and so I wandered downstairs, trying to distract myself for a few more moments. I sat down at the kitchen table and waited for my mom to finish making me some scrambled eggs - one of the few things she could cook with no problems. Wordlessly my mom put the plate of eggs in front of me. I was so hungry I started inhaling them right away. However, only a few moments after I had finished, my nausea came back with a vengeance and I ran up the stairs as fast as I could.

After my second bout of throwing up, I decided that I must be sick, so I went back into my bedroom. As I turned to go back to bed, something caught my eye next to my bulletin board. It was a picture of Angela, Ben and I at lunch. Next to me, there should have been a smiling and heartbreakingly gorgeous fourth person, but he was missing. Someone had cut it out carefully, removing the person that used to be next to me. Suddenly I was so angry I could hardly see straight. How dare he cut himself out of my pictures! He had no right to remove himself so completely from my life. The physical stuff didn't matter that much anyway. The hole in my heart would never let me forget Edward. I started to sink back into the numb abyss that I had been living in for the past two weeks, turning to lie back down on my bed, when I looked at my calendar and gasped in shock.

There on the calendar for today was a black X. I looked more carefully at the whole thing and saw the red X had been two days before. My period was two days late. I started to breathe in a panicked manner as my heart sped up faster than it ever had before. I was never late. My period was like clockwork. I thought about it for a moment and deduced that because of Edward leaving, I was under extreme stress, which I knew could mess with most women's cycles; however, it had never effected me this way before. Of course, it's not every day that the love of your life leaves. At that thought, I began to cry again, convinced that the extreme stress I was under was the reason for my late period. I allowed myself to sink into the abyss again.

A few hours later, I came back out of my waking sleep to be hit with a new wave of nausea. After I had finished losing my stomach contents again, I heard a soft knock on the door. Renee came in quietly and checked my temperature.

Then she looked at me piercingly and said, "Bella, you know I love you and you know that you can tell me anything. I won't tell Charlie, but, I need to ask you something uncomfortable."

She waited for me to answer her but I just looked at her with a dead, empty expression.

After a moment of awkward silence, she pushed on bravely, saying softly, "Bella, I know you are late. I saw your calendar. Your nausea and appetite are making me nervous. Bella, is there any chance you could be pregnant?"

I looked up at my mother in shock. I knew what the answer to that would be. Of course not. However explaining how I knew that was impossible was going to be much more difficult. I knew I was not pregnant because the only person I had ever slept with was a vampire. I laughed to myself humorlessly at the idea of Renee's reaction to that statement, while trying to collect myself enough to answer her question as honestly as possible.

Eventually, I attempted to side step the issue with, "Mom, I am going through a lot right now. I'm sure that's what is messing with my schedule."

However for once in Renee's life she was not about to be swayed from getting a better answer from me.

She directly asked, "Bella, did you sleep with him?"

I frantically searched for a moment, trying to come up with the best way to lie while keeping a straight, unreadable face for Renee. She had asked if I had slept with him. Since vampires could not sleep, I technically could not sleep with him.

I carefully and smoothly said, "Mom, of course I didn't sleep with him. I'm just eighteen. I'm not ready for that yet." Then quickly, to change the subject, I asked, "What's for dinner?"

Renee fell for it and reluctantly said, "Well, we were going to have steak, but I'm not sure if you're up for it."

Suddenly the idea of a nice thick medium rare steak was extremely appealing to me.

With a little too much enthusiasm I said, "Mom I think I can handle it, as long as it is not too well done."

Renee gave me a strange look but walked out of the room to start dinner and ask Charlie to start up the grill.

Over dinner that night, Mom announced that she needed to head back to Jacksonville. She begged and pleaded for me to come with her but I refused. I knew that there was no logical reason for me to stay in Forks now. Phil had a job with a minor league team. Mom was home a lot more. However, I could not bring myself to leave Forks. I knew that he was not coming back, but I couldn't help thinking that just in case he did return, I needed to be here so that he could find me. I adamantly refused, and after a while Renee and Charlie gave each other a long look and gave up. As soon as I could after dinner, I hugged them both and went up to bed. For the first time that day, my meal stayed down.

As I slipped under the covers, I focused on my parent's voices downstairs. They were arguing about taking me back to Jacksonville. Their voices were quite heated over the issue. Apparently, I hadn't fooled them at all. They knew I was staying here for him and even though neither one of them thought it was healthy, Charlie didn't want to lose me again after having so little time with me growing up. Mom eventually gave in and I breathed a sigh of relief, allowing sleep to take me.

Early the next morning, I woke to a banging on my door. My mom was waking me up to say goodbye. I was thankful to be woken from the nightmare I was having. I had been wandering everywhere looking for Edward, never finding him but feeling as if he was just out of reach somehow. I quickly got out of bed and went across the room to open the door to Renee. I hugged her, told her that I loved her and then watched her walk out the door. I looked at Charlie's face as the door closed behind my mother and saw the raw pain and hurt that was deeply etched into his face. He had never gotten over my mother and watching her walk back out the door, bags in hand, was a painful reminder of the day that she had left with me. After a moment, Charlie physically shook his head and turned to face me.

"Almost time for school, Bells. You need to get going if you are still feeling up to it," Charlie said to me carefully, watching to make sure I didn't break down again.

My mother's departure gave me no more excuses to stay home, and my nausea had not returned. I was going to have to get moving and go to school. I ran back upstairs and threw my clothes on quickly, trying to ignore the black stereo-shaped lump in the corner that I had forced out of my truck.

The drive to school was complete torture. Every second of the drive was quiet besides the roar of my ancient truck. All I could do was drive and think about him, which threatened to make the day even harder than it already was. I breathed a sigh of relief as I pulled into the school parking lot, knowing that among all these students, there would be someone to distract me and keep my mind off him. My eyes scanned the parking lot and even though I tried to force them to not look for his silver Volvo, they still swept the lot and my numbness returned.

About halfway through my first class, I was shocked out of my stupor when my intense nausea came back. I booked it to the bathroom, not waiting for a pass. After I finished losing my breakfast, I walked up to the nurse's office. Maybe she would send me home and I would be allowed to slip into my unthinking abyss again for a short while before Charlie came home.

When I walked into the office, there was a note on the door indicating that nurse was out for a few minutes on break, but that she would return soon. While I sat in her office alone my mother's question came back to bug me. I tried to brush it away time and again. However the more I tried to ignore her question, the more her questions about me being pregnant voiced themselves. Then, all of the sudden, in one small sensation, my life changed forever. As I tried to ignore the question she had asked me, I felt something in my lower abdomen nudge me.

**And yes I am a Nessie fan… although this story doesn't center around her, she will make her presence known **

**Reviewers get hugs from their Cullen of choice **


	5. Chapter 5 Tests

**A/N: I don't own Twilight- although the original plot line is mine.**

**This chapter is definitely a functional one… I'm not entirely happy with it but I think it's as good as it's gonna get right now… feedback and suggestions would be welcomed **** The next chapter is better I promise **

Chapter 5- Tests

I launched myself off the paper-covered bed and into the bathroom, locking the door behind me. I pulled my shirt up, my jeans down, and I saw a small but well-defined bump protruding from between my hips that somehow had escaped my attention until now. I gasped in shock and moved my hands instinctually to cradle the small, newly developed bump. As I wondered at the small but significant change in my body, I felt another small nudge. I started putting the pieces together - the nausea, my exhaustion, my appetite and the small bump that was now moving. I finally settled on the only possible explanation. I was pregnant with Edward's child. The only problem was the fact that it was excessively early for any of this. My body shouldn't even be registering that I was pregnant yet. I shouldn't have a small baby bump already. I knew I had to get out of there and make sure. Then, I would have to figure out what to do about this new development. I started to breathe quickly and my heart was racing. I had to leave before the school nurse had a chance to examine me. It would bring on a slew of questions that I could not answer.

I ran out of the bathroom and ran smack into the nurse. She looked at me in shock and then her look morphed into one of concern. I could read all over her face that she saw how broken, frantic and messed up I was. She looked at me, waiting for me to explain myself. I took a moment to calm myself down so that my voice would come out steady.

"I have been feeling horrid the last few days. I guess I'm not quite over it. I'm just going to go home before I get worse," I quickly said.

Before she had time to respond or try to examine me, I walked as quickly as I could towards the door. The nurse at first seemed like she wanted to stop me but seeing the determined look on my face, she allowed me to go. I walked out the door and to my ancient truck; once I was out of sight of the school, I pulled over and started sobbing, shaking from my tears. I was almost certain that I was pregnant and my problems were growing exponentially.

As I settled down, I started to figure out what I needed to do. The first thing I needed to take care of was confirming what I already knew. So, I started driving towards Seattle. I knew I could buy a pregnancy test in town, but that would start conversations that I would rather avoid. I had briefly considered Port Angeles, but I didn't like the idea of being there on my own, especially after I had almost been attacked there. With my luck, this would be the time I would get hurt, and so I settled on Seattle.

The drive was pure torture. My mind was whirling a million miles a minute, trying to figure out what to do. Ironically, the one family who might be able to help me had walked out of my life completely. My pain grew as I thought about my missing family. Carlisle would be a comfort and help. He would pour himself into research about my condition. Esme would hug me and fret over me, worrying more than my own mother could. Alice would be bouncing around the house, picking out a small wardrobe for a boy or a girl. Jasper would- well I didn't want to think about Jasper. It brought back too many memories of my failed birthday party. Rosalie would be excited at the idea of having a baby around since it was the thing she wanted more than anything else in the world. Emmett would tease and pick on me, but be sweet when it counted. He was really just a big softy, and Edward would… I gasped and started to shake as a new wave of tears swept over me. Even thinking his name was so painful sometimes that I could hardly keep it together. I desperately needed the family, my family that I would probably never see again. The family I wanted so desperately to be a part of but had left me behind.

Finally, after an excruciatingly long drive, I arrived in Seattle. I wasn't fussy; I found the first drug store that I could. I walked in like someone on a mission. The store's staff gave me a wide berth as I searched out what I needed. I grabbed a small basket and put three different pregnancy tests in it. I didn't know how well they would work taking into consideration that if I was in fact pregnant, the baby might be nothing that these tests had been designed to look for. I paused as I passed the refrigerated drinks and added two large water bottles to my basket. The middle-aged woman behind the counter gave me a brief but concerned look while she rang up my purchases. I ducked out of the store as quickly as I could, tightly clutching the bag that was going to change my life, one way or another.

I was originally just going to go find a bathroom somewhere and get it done and over with, but as I drove through Seattle, I thought about it and decided that checking into a hotel would be a better option. If the result was what I thought it was going to be, I needed to have some time to process it before I headed back to Forks and Charlie, if that was even what I was going to do. Finally, I rolled into a cheap but decent motel and checked in. The two young women at the front desk looked at me with even more concern than the store clerk had when they saw that I was lacking luggage, but professionally took care of me. Once I had made it to my room, I turned on the TV, trying to drown out the shouting in my head, while I drank as much water as I could.

Finally, after about an hour, my body was screaming its need to use the bathroom at me. I took the tests into the bathroom and used them all. The next two minutes were the most excruciating of my life. I hadn't felt any more movement from my stomach since I had decided on this route and I was hoping that I had just been imagining it. If I wasn't pregnant, it would allow me to grieve for my loss and then someday attempt to put my life back together alone. The only thing that was distracting me from that grief was the idea that I might have someone else's life to consider that would matter more to me than my own. Finally, the longest two minutes of my life were over, and I took a breath to steady myself before looking at the results.

I had intentionally bought three different kinds of tests, because I wanted to make sure that I got an accurate result. However, my thorough nature had really just proved to be a waste. All three tests vividly and completely told me that I was very pregnant with what could only be Edward's child. I stood there in shock, until I registered that there were silent tears streaming down my face.

I don't know how I got off the bathroom floor and to the bed, but I woke up there a while later. I glanced over at the clock, realized that I had been there overnight and that Charlie would be frantic with worry. I went to go grab my cell phone and call him to let him know where I was. I found his number in my phone book and then froze. How could I go back to Forks? What was I going to tell Charlie? What was I going to do with my obviously abnormal pregnancy? Who could help me with the birth of this child without things getting extremely awkward and risking the revealing of the vampire world? I sunk back down onto the bed and contemplated my options. Charlie and the people of Forks could not handle what was going on with me, but I wasn't sure how to disappear so that Charlie wouldn't come looking for me. I knew after considering many scenarios that my only logical choice was to go find the Cullens' friends in Denali since they would be the only other vampires out there who wouldn't want to eat me for lunch. The Cullens had mentioned them often enough that I felt like I should be able to find them with a little bit of luck. I realized that I couldn't take my truck and just drive to Denali; Charlie would follow me and demand an explanation. Besides that, I wasn't sure my truck would make the drive. I also realized that I couldn't really fake my death at this point. I wouldn't know what to do to make it convincing enough for Charlie to believe it. Finally, the best possible plan solidified in my head. It wasn't a perfect plan, but Charlie, and anyone else who might care to look, would have a hard time finding me. I was suddenly thankful that I had the sense to pay for my tests with cash and not my bankcard. There would be no way for Charlie to figure out why I had disappeared. Now that I knew what I was doing, I was almost peaceful. Once I made a decision, I would carry it through, no matter what the end was.

First, I checked out of the hotel. This would be the last place that I would use the name Isabella Swan, except for the bank. I still had my college fund, which should allow me to purchase a cheap car that would make it to Alaska and the Denalis' who were the only other clan of vegetarian vampires that I knew of in existence. I made my way to the bank and pulled every cent from my account.

Just as I was finishing the transaction, the teller looked up at me and said, "Miss, I am going to need to verify your ID one more time please."

I reluctantly handed the cashier my ID again and frantically thought as she examined it. Charlie had already put a watch on my account.

After a brief moment, I gushed out, "There is a watch on my account right? That would be my dad, the chief of police in our small town. I decided, spur of the moment, to get out of town for a few days. My b-boyfriend left me and I just needed some time to myself. I will call him and get it removed from my account."

The teller looked at me expectantly and I realized that I was going to have to make this phone call here so that she would believe me. Taking a couple deep breaths, I pulled my phone out and slowly found Charlie's number. I was in luck - the phone rang and went to voice mail. Charlie must not be home, but out looking for me. Still, I knew he would be checking his messages often.

I took a slow and controlled breath in an attempt to make my voice sound normal and said, "Dad, I needed to get out of town. I need some time to myself to deal with the Edward situation. I am fine and I will be home in a couple days. I love you, Dad."

With every ounce of my control, I hung up the phone, turned it off and looked expectantly at the teller. The woman behind the counter wavered for a moment and then reluctantly handed me the money in my account.

I walked as quickly as I could out of the bank as soon as the transaction was finished. Then I climbed into my truck and drove it a few miles away. Still attempting to control my tears, I climbed awkwardly out of the cab and left the truck unlocked with my keys in it. Charlie would find it and think something had happened, since this was such a strange way to leave my car, or it would be stolen and he would have a hard time tracking it down. I walked as swiftly as I could to a bus stop and waited for a bus. Once the bus arrived, I rode it until I saw a car dealership and then pulled the cord to get the bus driver to pull off at the next stop so I could get out.

After three long and annoying hours, I was driving away from the car dealership in a used PT Cruiser that seemed to be in good shape. I opted to pay a little more for the model that had more power behind it. I liked the unique blend of old style mixed in with the modern lines. I had always admired these vehicles and had wanted to own one at some point. I loved my truck, but if I had picked out a vehicle for myself, this is what I would have chosen. I was even more excited at the fact that it was a deep dark purple. It was so dark, I was pretty sure once the sun set it would look black. If someone had figured out what I was driving, the difference in color at night would help me keep from being noticed. The last thing I wanted was for my dad to show up in Alaska with me lying on a couch surrounded by vampires and extremely pregnant. On my way out of town, I stopped at a mall and spent a couple hours shopping. I knew I was going to need some clothes, and so I picked up the warmest clothing I could find without spending all my money. I wandered into the bookstore and picked up cheap copies of a couple of my favorites, one of the standard books on pregnancy, and a set of detailed maps, so that I would be able to find the Denali wilderness where Tanya and her coven lived.

Leaving the mall, I realized that night had fallen. I walked swiftly towards my new car and stashed all of my finds in the back. Then, I started up the car and drove towards the Alaskan wilderness.

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	6. Chapter 6 Denali

**A/N: So my not so little story hit over 1,000 hits with the last chapter… I'm excited to see so many people are enjoying this **

**Thank you to all of you who have already reviewed **

**However I really wish more of you would review… please click that lil button and let me know what you think ;)**

**Oh and Twilight is sadly not mine**

Chapter 6- Denali

As I crossed over the Alaska border, I breathed a sigh of relief. I knew that crossing the state line was getting me that much closer to get the help that both my baby and I would need. During the long drive, I had plenty of time to think through a lot of what was going on, while attempting to avoid the giant hole that had been ripped in my heart when Edward left. The baby was helping me focus on other things. I knew that the pain from losing Edward was not waning, but that I had something just as important as he had been and continued to be for me. Even though he was gone, I knew that no amount of time would heal the wounds or make me miss him less.

My thoughts as I drove lead me to some conclusions. I figured that Edward had no clue that a vampire and a human could have a child together. From conversations with the Cullens, I knew that female vampires could never give birth because they were frozen in time. Bearing children required a woman's body to change significantly and a vampire's body couldn't do that. However, after reading some the pregnancy book during stops to eat and stretch, I realized that men did not have to change to have children. Their bodies pretty much stayed the same all their lives. Edward's body did not need to undergo a change to get me pregnant. That was probably the reason why such a thing was possible. Without Carlisle's medical knowledge, it was the best hypothesis I could come up with.

This baby was a product of Edward and I. It would share traits from both of us. I began to wonder what it would look like. Whose eyes, nose, mouth and ears would the baby have? What color hair would he or she inherit? I began to draw pictures of my unborn child in my head. I pictured almost every combination I could come up with. The more I imagined my child, the more I saw a small boy around two or three who was a miniature version of his father right down to the bronze hair that was perfectly messy, sticking out artfully from his head. I gasped at this, and then the mental picture began to morph into a mental picture of my baby's father. My body began to shake with sobs ripping out of me. I had to pull the car over to cry myself out before I continued to drive towards Denali as the painful, soul-wrenching ache of his absence pulled the invisible hole open even more, bleeding and making it almost impossible to breathe.

Once I gained control, the next thing I realized was the fact that no one knew this was a possibility. Edward would have been too worried about the consequences of me carrying a baby that had any of his traits. The unknown aspect alone would cause issues and if the baby's diet was similar to his, I wasn't sure if I would make it through the pregnancy. If the baby needed blood, it might start feeding from me. The baby would be lacking the control of his or her father but have the instinct of a vampire, which made for a scary possibility. Again, I wished hard that Carlisle were here to answer my questions about the unusual nature of my pregnancy. I was also curious why Alice hadn't seen this coming. I knew that Edward was a gentleman. Even if he didn't love me anymore, could he really abandon his baby? There must be a reason he had not come to help us. I was obviously pregnant but I wondered how much this child would be like his or her father. Which vampire traits would carry through, and how would they morph with my human ones? Although I was thankful that so far, besides my inability to keep anything down except for the rarest of steaks, I was feeling and doing fine.

Then, while I considered what I was able to eat, it hit me like lightning. The baby was craving blood and that is why I was craving rare meat. It was providing the baby with the blood it wanted. It had an appetite more like its father than me. I couldn't believe that I had missed something so obvious. This was going to prove to be challenging. I knew I had better test my theory and soon. Maybe once I reached the Denali's I could find a way to access the blood I would need to check my hypothesis.

I also considered asking the Denali's to contact the Cullens. I didn't want to force Edward to stay with me due to the obligation he would feel towards our child. However, I knew that the only person who possibly had a good chance of helping me to deal with this was Carlisle. His unbelievable ability to avoid human blood and his knowledge as a doctor would be extremely beneficial for such a unique child.

The longer I thought about my baby, the more I realized that I was going to need to confront Edward. Even though he had left me crushed and broken, he didn't deserve to be kept away from his child. Watching Charlie have to live without me in his life, I saw how it had slowly crushed his heart and made losing my mom even more unbearable. My father loved me very much, even though he rarely said it, and it had killed him to leave me with Renee every time our visits were over. I would not be responsible for doing that to Edward. I still couldn't even handle thinking his name without crying profusely. At this thought, I had to momentarily pull off on the side of the road again to get my silent tears enough in check that I could see where I was driving. I took the opportunity to check over the maps and once my tears subsided, I continued towards my goal with renewed purpose and desire. I was on a mission to help my child and allow him or her to know their family. I didn't know how I was going to survive being around him, knowing that he didn't want me or love me anymore, but I was going to have to let my heart be ripped up even further, because I knew that what my child needed was more important than what I would ever need. I took these thoughts, used them to help me steel my resolve, and with determination drove into the secluded Denali wilderness.

I turned off the main road onto the only side road going into the forest that I had seen for miles in either direction and after driving for a little while longer I finally came up to a large house that was almost invisible in the surrounding trees. I knew that I had the right place when I saw something move too fast to be anything other than a vampire. Using my bravest expression to mask my fear, I walked up to the front door and after a slight pause knocked on it as confidently as I could. My mouth slipped into a frown after a moment when I realized that even though they were there, at this point they were not keen on answering the door to some unknown human.

After a few moments, I pounded on the door harder and said in a normal tone of voice that I knew they could hear, "I know who and what you are. I am a friend of the Cullens."

Almost immediately, the door swung open to reveal a tall, impossibly gorgeous, strawberry blond who was scowling down at me in disdain.

I gasped in a couple of breaths and then unsteadily said, "Tanya?"

The young woman's eyes widened at her name and it took her a moment to respond. While I waited, I took a detailed look at her. She was impossibly beautiful, even more so than Rosalie. Her hair hung down her back in small intricate ringlets. Her eyes were expressive and the same signature topaz color that marked her for what she was. She had perfect, regal features. Her long legs seemed to stretch on for miles and she had perfect curves, completely in balance.

Finally, she spoke up harshly, "How do you know me and what business do you have here? I will call the Cullens to verify your story. Explain yourself. Now!"

I took a couple of extra breaths and then as slowly and evenly as possible started in with, "My name is Bella-"

At that, her eyes widened even more but this time in understanding and shock. It caused me to stop speaking and look at her. Suddenly, her arm was around my shoulder and she was carefully ushering me into the cold house, shutting the door behind her.

As I looked around, I saw a few other vampires sitting around engaged in various pursuits except for one, whose eyes were focused on me with shock and awe. I looked at him for a moment until my mind flooded with the memories of last spring. I gasped and shook my head slightly as I stared into the wide orange eyes of Laurent.

Then, I heard Laurent gasp out, "Bella?"

I nodded slightly and suddenly every eye in the large room was on me. The awkward silence seemed to stretch out for an eternity. I looked slowly around the room at the different individuals it contained, trying to match up faces with the descriptions and names that I had heard from Edward and Carlisle.

Finally, Tanya cleared her throat unnecessarily and said, "Bella, what are you doing here? Why aren't you in Forks?"

I took in a deep breath, and addressed them all, "I am here because I need to reach the Cullens desperately and I knew that you were the only chance I had of tracking them down. It is very important that I talk to them as soon as possible."

I am sure they could hear the desperation in my tone, and at this point, I didn't care one bit. I looked up at Tanya, trying to put as much determination into my expression as possible. Tanya looked at me, with conflict raging in her eyes, for a moment.

Then, she set her lips in a thin harsh line and said, "Well I don't really know where they are or how to contact them right now. Carlisle hasn't called me to let me know where the family has resettled. Let's talk about this some more, after we get some food in you. You look like you are famished and exhausted." With that, Tanya took me by the hand and escorted me through the house to the kitchen.

Tanya unceremoniously pulled out a stool and motioned for me to sit as she walked over to the freezer and pulled out a frozen steak and some veggies. Then she switched to the fridge to pull out some pre-made mashed potatoes. I had no idea why she had all this human food lying around. It really confused me, since I knew from what the Cullens had mentioned about the Denali, that they lived as far from humans as possible, so they didn't have as many reasons to keep up appearances.

Apparently, the unspoken question was clear in my expression because Tanya let out a small knowing laugh and said, "My sisters and I often have male human company that needs to eat, so we keep a stock of food on hand. Bella, how do you like your steak?"

I blushed furiously as I remembered that Edward had told me that Tanya and her sisters loved sleeping with human men, and that is what had driven them to their current lifestyle choice. I mumbled out that I wanted my steak rare and then slipped back into my embarrassed silence.

As Tanya was preparing the food for me, the oldest of the vampires came into the room. I looked at him for a moment and realized that I was looking at Eleazar. Carlisle had told me about him over the summer, when I was talking with him one night. Eleazar had been changed in his mid thirties and had been a member of the Volturi at one point. The Volturi were little more than a name to me. I knew that they were a kind of ruling class for the vampire world, but other than that, the Cullens had said little about them, even though I could tell they were important somehow. He looked at me for a few moments, his expression becoming more and more frustrated as he stared at me.

Then suddenly, a smile slowly erupted on his beautiful, distinguished face and he said in awe, "Astonishing. I have never seen such a strong mental shield in a vampire, let alone in a human."

I looked at him and then Tanya questioningly, however neither seemed to answer my nonverbal question. I thought about his statement and his confused look for a moment. It reminded me of the look that Edward got when he was trying yet again to read my mind. Eleazar must have a power then too. I didn't understand the part about a mental shield though so I decided to ask him.

"Eleazar, what is a mental shield and were you referring to me?" I said and looked up at him, awaiting an answer to shed some light onto his previous statement.

He looked at me in surprise, then quickly composed himself and said, "Bella, I can read the power of other vampires and humans. Vampires are easier to read because I am one. Humans are harder, unless they have some kind of manifestation of their power in their human form. Humans like this are so rare that I only know of three others like you. You are a mental shield. That means that no one can use any power meant to affect the mind on you. I am going to guess that Edward can't read your mind."

I visibly flinched at the mention of his name. The hole in my heart was suddenly bleeding and I couldn't breathe. I wrapped my arms around myself and tried to take deep breathes until I was able to settle down. When I looked up at Eleazar and Tanya, their faces were obvious expressions of discomfort at seeing me fall apart at the seams at the mere mention of his name.

Finally, I stammered out, "He couldn't read my mind and it made him curious about me."

After I finished my statement, the tears were flowing fast and thick down my face. Suddenly I felt a pair of cold hard arms wrapped around me in a comforting gesture. I looked up at the face of the person who was hugging me and found that Carmen, Eleazar's mate, was carefully hugging me as I cried.

Once I settled down, Tanya led me to a spare room in the house and said, "Bella you are welcome to stay with us while I try to contact the Cullens. I don't know how successful we will be, but I will try. I can see how much you truly love him. I will do what I can to help you."

The tears began again at the mention of my love for him. Tanya gave me a gentle but awkward hug and closed the door behind her, giving me the peace I needed to allow the pain to put me back in my numb state and fall asleep.

**Okay so I know she just got there but trust me…. Stopping here was the best place. Trust me you'll see… and don't read too much into Tanya yet… there is more coming ;)**

**Reviewers get responses and almost any question answered (as long as it doesn't give away too much of the future plot)**


	7. Chapter 7 Petrified

Chapter 7- Petrified

When I finally woke up, my stomach was urgently announcing its need for nourishment. I hadn't been eating well, and I knew that I was now eating for two. Before I was able to move from my bed, I heard two voices arguing loudly enough for me to hear, which was strange in a house full of creatures with perfect hearing. Of course, I reasoned, they were not used to having human houseguests and probably didn't worry as much about volume levels as my vampires had. As I listened in, I caught up with their conversation and was completely shocked - and confused. They were talking about me, which considering my abrupt arrival, didn't surprise me. However, the subject matter was more concerning. They were trying to decide if they should call the Cullens or not. This meant that they had lied to me the night before and that they actually knew where the Cullens were. The fact that these vampires would consider trying to keep me from speaking to the Cullens told me that I could not trust them. I was glad I had not told them about the baby. I would get the information I needed out of them and, if possible, go somewhere else to get the help I would need to deliver my child. I could not trust people who would not put me in contact with the only ones I knew of that could help set things right again. I was not deluding myself. Edward had made it clear that he did not want me. I just wanted to give him a chance to know his child. I was also going to need Carlisle's help to ensure the health of this child. For all I knew, my baby was the first of its kind. However, no matter their motivations, these vampires had no right to make decisions for me. The only problem I had was trying to figure out where else to go. Maybe if I questioned carefully, without revealing too much, I could find out more and figure out where to go from here.

Finally, when the two vampires, Tanya and Eleazar, had finished their conversation and had moved away from my room I decided to wait ten more minutes and then hop out of bed. They would hear me move and know I was awake. While I laid there waiting, I tried to come up with some questions that might get me the information I needed to know. I formed a mental list, and reviewed it a few times until I knew it would sound like I was merely curious; I couldn't let them get suspicious about my motivations, or give them any clues about my child. Finally, the time limit I had placed on myself passed and I hit the floor with a thud, getting a foot tangled in the sheets as I tried to stand up. In a flash, the door was open and Tanya was helping me to my feet.

Tanya gave me a much-practiced smile and said, "I'm going to bet you are hungry. What would you like for breakfast?"

I thought for a moment. At this point, the only thing I knew I could keep down was steak, but that was going to sound like an odd breakfast request. However, I knew I needed to keep myself healthy for the baby.

After a brief pause to consider my options, I said, "Tanya this is going to sound strange, but we eat a lot of steak at my house, even for breakfast. So steak and eggs would be awesome, but I can make it myself, ok?"

An odd look flashed across Tanya's face however before I could read it, it was replaced with a controlled but polite expression.

"Of course, I am only the master of a few meals myself. I'll let you fend for yourself but if you need anything, don't hesitate to ask," she said. She smiled warmly at me and then headed down the hallway towards her room.

I wandered downstairs slowly, being careful not to trip on the stairs. Pregnancy and my clumsy gene were not going to get along very well. It was a good thing I wouldn't be staying here long. Once I reached the kitchen, I started the eggs and pulled out a fresh steak from the fridge. Behind the steak, I found something else that made me even more excited - labeled medical-style bags of blood. I wasn't sure why they kept any around, but I knew that before I left I would be able to prove my theory one way or another. As I looked at the steak, it seemed like it was a shame to cook it at all, however I knew it would be very strange, and raise many questions if I didn't at least sear the outsides of the meat. Once the eggs were done, I wiped out the skillet and placed the steak in it. Once it was just seared enough that no one would notice, I plopped it on my plate and started to dig in hungrily. The eggs were completely unappetizing and so I moved them around to make it look like I had eaten them. The steak was completely gone in a matter of minutes. It helped to ease my hunger a little bit; however, my body was definitely craving more food. I went back to the fridge guiltily and looked. There were tons of bags of blood in the fridge. I figured that they wouldn't notice if one went missing, however the trick was going to be opening it with them around. The smell of cold animal blood from the steak was one thing but I didn't know how well I would fair with the smell of human blood in the air. If I wasn't careful, I was going to turn on their hunting instincts, which would put both of us at risk.

I knew the best way for this to happen would be if they would go hunting, but I didn't notice anyone with black eyes when I got here, so they might have at least a few more days before needing to hunt. The other option would be to snitch one when I left and try it while I was on the road. After a moment of thought, I realized that this was the better plan.

I decided that getting out of Alaska as soon as possible was my best option, so I went wandering around the house looking for Eleazar. I figured that out of all the vampires in this house, he would be the easiest one to question. I had more questions about the power that I apparently had, which would make opening a line of questioning with him simple. He was also so much different from the rest. He was older than Tanya and her sisters were, plus his skin looked very different than most of the immortals I knew. I knew this could also be a great place to break the ice. I nodded my head to myself in resolve, and determined that I could do this, and had to for the sake of my child. Almost as in response to my decision, my sweet little one decided to remind me what I was fighting so hard for, by moving for the first time of the day. Already, since the first time I had felt the baby move, I could tell that the baby was getting stronger and looking down I knew I wasn't going to be able to hide my pregnancy much longer. I was completely surprised that they could not already hear the baby's heartbeat. However, this pregnancy was anything but normal, so I focused on my plan - because the sooner I left Alaska for somewhere new, the better off I would be.

Finally, out back in a large field I saw Eleazar standing in the snow enjoying the light sparkling off his skin. The differing texture of his skin made a slightly different effect than Edward's did but I could recognize it for what it was. Softly, knowing he could hear me, I said his name. His response was almost comical. He looked shocked, and then ran over towards me as quickly as he could.

"Bella, what can I do for you today?" Eleazar's bell-like voice said with a slight look of concern on his face.

"I was just wondering a few things. Would you mind if I asked you some questions? You are the first vampires I have met besides the Cu-ullens and I was kind of hoping to get a slightly different perspective than the one I already have. Would that be ok with you?" I said quickly with obvious interest in my voice.

Eleazar nodded at me and smiled. I breathed in slowly and deeply to settle myself and then began with, "I am sure you get this all the time, but I was wondering about-"

Eleazar chuckled slightly and finished for me, "- my skin?"

I nodded with an apologetic look on my face. I did not want to offend him. He seemed like a kind person, despite his argument about contacting the Cullens and I desperately needed the information he had for me.

"Well, my dear," he said, "I was once I member of the Volturi. We chose, for a long time, to sit very still. It caused our skin to alter and our eyes to cloud over, creating the difference in texture. In theory, if a vampire were to sit still long enough they would turn to stone. However, no one has ever done it long enough to prove the theory. At least that anyone knows of. It would be hard to tell the difference between a petrified vampire and a marble statue wouldn't it?"

I nodded in agreement with his almost rhetorical question and took a moment to contemplate his answer. I had heard the name of the Volturi before, said with the same kind of respect and almost fear. I also knew that Carlisle had also spent some time with them, however, that was the extent of my knowledge.

Finally, I formed my next question, being careful to manage the tone and speed of my voice and I asked, "Eleazar, I have heard the Volturi mentioned before. I know Carlisle stayed with them for a while. Who exactly are they?"

Eleazar looked at me piercingly for a moment and then, with his lips set in a hard line, he said roughly, "The Volturi are basically the vampire version of royalty. There are currently five members of the family; Aro, Caius and Marcus, along with Caius and Aro's wives. Then there is the guard. Last we knew, there were nine official members but there are usually quite a few others that are more transitory. They are the largest vampire coven in existence."

I thought for a moment, then remembered my first visit to the large white house in Forks and remembered the largest painting in Carlisle's study. He had referred to the other three in the painting as nighttime patrons of the arts, but the three men in the painting and the Volturi were the same. I briefly wondered why no one had told me about them in more detail before. However, I stopped myself after a moment and formulated another question.

"Why are the Volturi considered the vampire version of royalty? I understand that they are a large coven, but what separates them from the others?" Eleazar's eyes darkened at my question, and I held my breath for a moment before remembering that I needed to breathe.

After a longer pause, Eleazar said, with disdain dripping from his voice, "Bella, they are referred to as such because they are the ones who enforce the rules. They will kill those who do not obey. The family rarely leaves their castle in Volterra, Italy, choosing instead to allow their guard to do most of the dirty work for them. However, when they want something or someone specifically, Aro will leave, occasionally accompanied by Caius. See, they are also collectors of sorts. They are constantly on the lookout for the best vampires with the most formidable talents to add to their guard. You would be especially appealing to them with your unique abilities."

Abruptly a look of shock and terror spread across Eleazar's face, and then he attempted to replace it with a more composed look as he swiftly said, "I think that is enough questions for today. We should get you out of the cold Bella; it is not good for a human such as you."

With that, Eleazar had me in his arms and was running towards the house.

Once we reached the house and Eleazar had put me down, I walked back up to the guest room that Tanya had prepared for me to give myself some time to think things over. Just as I got settled on the bed, I heard a light knock on the door and someone softly say my name. Reluctantly, I pulled myself back off the bed and opened the door.

Standing on the other side was Tanya's sister, Kate. She was looking at me with a concerned and worried expression.

"Bella, may I talk with you alone for a few moments?" Kate hurried out almost so fast that I had trouble understanding her at first.

I nodded and said, "Where are we going? Right now I know the rest of them can hear us."

Kate gave one short, hard laugh and said in a normal tone, "Can you guys clear out for a little bit? I need to talk to Bella on my own."

Apparently, they all had agreed in voices too low and soft for me to hear, because I heard the door open and close a few times before the house went silent again. At the sound of the door closing for the last time, Kate turned to me and motioned for me to sit down on the bed with her.

Then, she began with, "Bella, I need to know. Why do you want to get in contact with the Cullens so badly? We know all about you and Edward, and that he left you. Jasper and Alice were here for a couple days after your birthday party. I am trying to figure out if you are trying to go against Edward's wishes or if there is something more here."

I looked at her for a moment, trying to judge her character. I didn't know what to say or do. I was fairly certain that there was no way I could really trust them with the truth. After overhearing Tanya and Eleazar's conversation, I didn't want to risk the truth and then have them still refuse to contact the Cullens. I needed help with my pregnancy. I knew if I could reach the Cullens, they would come to help me. They owed me that much, however, I didn't know what would happen if I trusted Kate.

I decided to err on the side of caution, revealing only a little of my story, "Kate I can assure you that this is more than me going after them. There is something much bigger going on here, but I am not sure how much I can trust your family. I heard Tanya and Eleazar this morning. I know that you know where the Cullens are and that you are refusing to contact them. Kate, I can tell you that they will desperately want to know what is going on here, but that is all I am going to tell people who would lie to me."

I looked at her defiantly with obvious challenge. She wasn't going to get the truth out of me if she refused to tell me the truth. The expression on Kate's face went slowly from shock to sadness and regret and the rest of her body sat there, frozen in place.

Finally, after an extremely long pause, especially for an immortal, Kate stammered out, "Bella we- we are just trying to do the right thing here. We just aren't sure what that is. We didn't want to mention it to you because we thought you might do something drastic and they would never forgive us if something were to happen to you. They all care about you very much; they are just trying to respect Edward's decision. I wish I knew what the right thing to do was. If my mother were here she would be able to advise us wisely."

Kate paused, pain evident on her face. I looked at her questioningly, waiting for her to explain her mother's absence.

She sighed and said, "My mother was executed by the Volturi for the creation of an immortal child. Immortal children are created when a vampire bites a human infant or small child. They are completely uncontrollable and therefore illegal. However, the temptation for some to create them is high because there is no way that a vampire can conceive a child period. There are some ancient rumors of human females getting pregnant with the children of male vampires, however, there is nothing about those pregnancies ever having a final result of a child. Those stories are really just ways to justify infidelity. The incubus and succubus do not leave survivors, with three very notable female exceptions and they are all in this house. "

With her last statement, Kate gave me a comical villain's grin and resumed, "However, back to the topic at hand. Bella, we need to sit down and discuss this. If I go get the rest of my family, will you at least discuss this with us?"

I nodded and Kate ran out of the room quickly.

I knew I only had moments before the whole clan would arrive back at the house if Kate were moving at top speed. I was hoping that she wouldn't rush, due to my agreement to wait for them. I knew I had to leave now, before they all started questioning me and I was stuck with no help for my situation. Kate's comments about using vampire pregnancies to justify infidelity told me that there was no way they were going to believe a word I had to say about Edward being the father of my baby. Quickly, I grabbed my bag and shoved all of my things that I could reach into it. Then, I moved as quickly as I could down the stairs, only tripping up once. I ran to the kitchen, grabbed a few bags of blood, and threw them in the top of my bag. Moving as fast as I could, I ran out the door for my PT, and sped out of the Denali wilderness towards Fairbanks. I knew now that my only chance to save my baby was in a city called Volterra. I hoped that their desire for power would work in my favor, allowing me to get the assistance I required. As I cleared the trees and hit the main highway, crowded with traffic, I thought I saw a faint glitter in the trees. When I looked again, it was gone.


	8. Chapter 8 Italy

**A/N: Here is the next piece : ) Hope you enjoy : ) **

**Reviews make me smile and I need all the smiles I can get right now (bad week).**

**Again- not mine.**

Chapter 8- Italy

When I reached the airport in Fairbanks, I found whatever flight I could to a major city. I knew I was not able to catch a flight to Italy out of Fairbanks, but I could get a connecting flight from another city. I was in luck. After talking to someone at the ticket counter, I found a flight to New York City that was leaving in less than an hour. It was perfect. There was very little chance that the Denali would reach me in time. It was a very sunny day out, a rare thing in Alaska; their need to remain inconspicuous in the city would limit them.

While I waited, I decided to experiment with the blood. I knew that it was poor timing but I was exhausted, hungry and I needed something in my stomach. This had as good a chance as any of working, so I walked up to one of the cute little gift shops and looked around until I found a covered mug with an opaque straw. I found one of the bathrooms, and once I was sure that no one else was in there, I opened my bag and emptied one of the packages of blood into the cup with one hand while I plugged my nose with the other. The last thing I needed was to get sick. Once I had the liquid in the cup, I put the lid on without looking at the contents, and threw the empty bag away, wrapped inside a few paper towels. Hesitantly, I took a sniff and the strangest thing happened. Instead of being nauseated, I was suddenly famished. I wrapped my lips around the straw and took a small draw into my mouth. Instead of being disgusted, the blood tasted wonderful! I quickly finished the rest off and then eagerly filled the cup up using a couple more bags. Given my normal aversion to blood, it was strange that it was the only thing I could have now without getting sick. I remembered the day in biology when I passed out at the sight of a little drop of blood. Now I was drinking it as if it was ambrosia. Once I got everything set, I walked back out to wait for my flight.

I still had a good half hour until my flight and I was feeling awake and energized. I started tapping my foot on the floor and I gasped. The baby was moving more than it had before. The last couple of kicks before it settled down were enough to make me gasp in pain. I began to wonder if this child was going to be as strong as its father was and cringed. Trying to distract myself, I reached into my bag carefully, trying not to let anyone see the bags of blood that it contained, and grabbed out a few of my books. I figured I should read up about normal pregnancy at this point. I knew that mine was far from normal, however I wanted to be as well informed as possible for the health and well being of this amazing gift I had been given. As I searched my bag, my frustration grew. After a few minutes, I conceded, realizing that my book was missing. I had left it in Denali. They would know that I was pregnant, and Edward would have to find out from them. How stupid of me! I couldn't believe I left the answer right there with them. I considered going back, but I knew there was no guarantee that even with this new information they would find my vampires for me. At this thought, a voice came over the speakers and announced the boarding of my flight. With a determined expression, I collected my things carefully and boarded my flight for New York City.

I sat down in my seat to relax and the next thing I knew I was being shaken gently. I blinked my eyes and realized that the plane was almost empty.

A kind, motherly flight attendant looked fondly down at me and said, "Welcome to New York City. Have a nice day miss."

I thanked her, stumbled awkwardly out of my seat and collected my bag. Then I carefully walked off the plane and headed for the ticket counter and thought, Italy here I come.

After procuring a ticket for the first flight to Italy that I could get, I sank into a chair to wait for my flight. I couldn't help but think about the hard time I had at the customs station. Charlie had used his influence to track me down again. I regretted having to use my real ID to get on an international flight, however, I really didn't have much of a choice. I also reasoned with myself that Charlie would never think to look for me so far from home – but I was wrong. Charlie was truly worried about me and had done everything in his power to track me down. I shuddered at the thought of the vile things I had to say to my father to get him to lift the alert from my name and allow me to get on the plane. If he had known the real reason, I never would have been able to leave. As it was, I had to use every ounce of my being to lie so thoroughly to Charlie. I was eighteen and legally, as long as I was acting of my own free will, Charlie could do nothing. He begged me to come home, but I refused to return or to tell him where I was going. The airline officials could not tell him my destination without cause. I felt horrible because I loved him, but I knew that the survival of this baby was more important than upsetting my father.

Distracting me from my thoughts, I felt another nudge from my stomach. The baby was responding to my stress levels and I gently caressed my swelling abdomen. Then, my stomach began to grumble hungrily and I sighed. I hoped the blood I had in my bag was still good. I was going to have to find another supply when I got to Italy so that the baby could get what he or she needed. I went swiftly to the bathroom, rinsed out the cup that I had bought in Fairbanks, and then quickly emptied the last two bags of blood into the waiting cup. This time, without hesitation, as I walked from the bathroom I began to suck the thick liquid hungrily through the straw. As I waited for the flight, I went to one of the small bookstores in the waiting area and picked up another copy of the book I had left in Alaska. Once I sat down in the chair, I began to read it since I had hours before my next flight. I use the book to track my symptoms, my size and the baby's movement, and realized that, according to this book, I was roughly three months along already. If my growth rate continued on this course in about a month, I was going to give birth. I slammed the book shut and tried to control my breathing. I knew that I was moving through this pregnancy quicker than I should, but I was not prepared for things to go this fast! I knew that I needed to get to Volterra without delay.

Just as I collected my bags in preparation to load my flight, I felt a cold hand grasp my shoulder and turn me around. Suddenly I was face to face with Kate who was holding up the book I had left in Denali at eye level. I gasped and moved backwards slightly.

Kate stared at me for a long hard moment and then pushed out, "Bella, are you pregnant?"

I looked at Kate, not sure how to respond. Kate scowled at me as I tried to come up with an acceptable answer. After trying to come up with an excuse, I knew there was nothing I could do but tell the truth, at least some of it. I knew that Kate and her family could not give me the help I would need for my child, and the look on Kate's face told me that at this point there was no chance that she would contact the Cullens for me, even if she somehow believed that Edward was the father. I decided in that split second that my only out would be to say that I had slept with someone else right after Edward had left. As much as it killed me to betray Edward this way, it was the only explanation that would allow me to go where I could keep my baby safe. It would hurt Edward if he ever found out what I had told Kate, but this was far more important than his feelings. This course would make it completely impossible for Edward to be in my baby's life. I mourned this thought but could not come up with an alternative that would allow me to get on my plane.

I used every ounce of courage that I had, whipped around to face Kate and spat out, "Yes, Kate, I am pregnant. I just found out. I was so upset at Edward for leaving that I slept with my best friend and now I am moving to get away from all of it. Please just leave me alone. I need to get out of here. I went running to Denali so that I could speak to the Cullens but I realize that it was a mistake. I was panicking and it was inexcusable. I feel horrible about what I have done, however I cannot change it now. I am moving away. I never want to have to face Edward with what I have done. Please, just let me go, Kate."

Kate's face was in shock. After a moment, a scowl spread across it and she spat out, "How could you? Do you have any idea-" She automatically let go of my shoulder and froze in place. Then an unreadable mask spread over her face and in a cold voice she said, "We called the Cullens after you left and asked for Edward. They told us he was in South America chasing after some girl. Obviously, you didn't mean much to him. He seems to have already moved on. Not that you cared for him either. Good luck being a single mom, Bella." Kate then whipped around and moved quickly through the airport disappearing in the crowd. I numbly moved as fast as I could towards the now open gate and boarded my flight to Italy. I prayed as I ran that Kate did not realize where my flight was headed. One conversation with Eleazar would connect the dots for her, causing further complications for me.

The moment that I sank down into my seat, I began to sob. I had ruined any chance I ever had of allowing Edward to be part of my life again. Not that he had really cared to begin with. I knew that he didn't want me, but to hear that he was already with someone new broke my heart even further. All I could think about was the fact that he didn't love me, and that his son or daughter would never know who he was; he would never get the chance to be part of the baby's life. I had grown up with very little involvement in my father's life and I knew what my son or daughter would be losing. Silently, someone sat down in the seat next to me, but graciously ignored me and I cried myself to sleep.

The next thing I knew, a kind older gentleman was speaking to me with a heavy Italian accent, saying, "Miss, we are in Italy. The plane is landing now. I thought you would want to wake up before we landed."

I smiled slightly at the older man, groggily thanked him and finished waking up. Once the plane touched the ground, I grabbed my backpack and walked off the plane into the terminal. I quickly moved through the airport and went outside to grab a taxi. After a moment, I caught one cabby's attention and he addressed me in broken English.

I let him know my location and he said, "Miss that will be quite an expensive fare, about sixty dollars in US."

I nodded at the man and wordlessly handed him eighty dollars. He smiled, loaded my things into the cab and sped away from the airport towards the ancient city of Volterra.

When I arrived in the city, I was awestruck by its ancient beauty. The town was old and walled like a fortress. Around the ancient part of the city, it had expanded to include modern buildings, however, the center of the city still looked like it must have when the city was built. At the center of the ancient portion stood a large castle that towered over the town in obvious splendor. I stared at the castle for a moment and then asked the driver who owned it.

He chuckled and said, "Well that castle is owned by one of the ancient families who have lived there since before anyone can remember. They are the direct descendants of the vampire killers that made our city safe from the cold killers that once lived here. Legend says that these killers were actually vampires."

For a moment, I was confused. I knew that this place was home to a large and powerful coven of traditional vampires, however why would this man think that there were no vampires here? Then as the cabby went on, I got my answer. The people that they thought had rescued them from the vampires were the vampires themselves. He mentioned the cities saviors by name and I recognized the names from Carlisle having named them in the painting. They were the same three men: Aro, Caius and Marcus, the leaders of the Volturi. I quickly stifled the laugh that was attempting to escape and requested that he take me to the hotel closest to the ancient castle. The driver smiled back at me, and did as I asked.

I checked into my hotel and then decided to go explore the city after I ate. I went down to the hotel restaurant, ordered the largest steak they had, extra rare, and dug in. The steak left me unsatisfied but fought off my food – well, blood cravings for a while. I decided to go explore the city to see if I could come up with ideas to get in to see the Volturi. If my pregnancy continued on its current course, I knew I would have to find them as soon as I could. The baby was very strong and was already leaving bruises from its movement. I had found the first bruise when I settled into my new hotel room. I knew, instinctually, that it was only going to get worse as the baby continued to grow stronger.

I slowly wandered around the town, taking in the beauty of the architecture and the interesting blend of the ancient buildings with the modern way of life. I headed towards one of the banks that I came across and went in to exchange the last of my US currency for Euros. When I was finally able to complete my transaction, I turned to walk from the bank. As I moved towards the door, a pair of small petite figures looked up at me from underneath their dark cloaks moving to go around me. I gasped when I saw their eyes. They were blood red. They stopped dead in their tracks and stared at me for a long moment.

I fearlessly walked towards them and said in a voice only a vampire could hear, "I know what you are. I need to see Aro, Caius and Marcus. Please!"

They froze in complete stillness like statues. After a long moment, the male member of the set took a couple of very slow steps towards me and took in a deep breath. His mouth dropped open and his mouth moved rapidly. I knew he must have been addressing the girl with him. Swiftly, the young woman took a hold of one of my wrists, as the boy walked towards the counter to take complete their goal here.

While he was working with a terrified teller, the small girl turned towards my ear and lightly, but harshly, said, "I don't know what you are thinking, but I am warning you. Do not try anything stupid. We will take you to them, since it is clear that you have been around others of our kind, but do not count on living through the experience."

As she finished, a vicious smile spread across her face causing her to look at me in a strange manner. I realized that she was looking at me as if I was her next meal. I involuntarily shivered in her grasp and she let out a low chuckle as her counterpart came back to join us. The two flanked either side of me as we quietly walked through the streets. They were both dressed alike in very long cloaks that were just a little too light to be called black. The cloaks completely enveloped them as they walked with their heads down into the light of the setting sun. I stopped breathing for a moment until I realized that their cloaks were designed to block the sun from their skin and keep them from glittering in the sunlight. As we entered the light, the girl dropped my hand for a moment, only grabbing it again after putting on a long black glove. We walked through the streets, until we found a darkened alley that lead to a dead end.

I looked at the boy with a puzzled expression and he said, "You'll see," and motioned me forward.

Once we reached the end of the alleyway, she let me go and crouched down to move a large grate out of the way. With a wink at me, the boy calmly jumped into the dark hole.

After a brief pause, I heard a light thump and then a voice from the black opening saying, "I'll catch her. Jane, drop her down to me."

Jane looked at me with a sweet but menacing smile and lowered me into the hole by my wrists.

She said, "Ready, Alec?"

Then, without waiting for a response, Jane dropped me into the darkness. The distance seemed extremely far and I stopped breathing as I fell into the subterranean space. After a moment, I felt hard, cold arms catch me in the darkness. I attempted to move out of Alec's grasp, but he held me snugly against him.

After a moment he said, "Stop moving. I am going to carry you. It will be a lot faster to travel this way."

I nodded at him, knowing he could see in the darkness, even though I couldn't see him, and tried futilely to squint in the dark. After another couple of moments, I heard the grate close and then another thump as Jane joined us in the tunnel. I unconsciously moved closer into Alec's arms, as I heard Jane land.

Alec laughed softly and whispered, "Yes, my sister is quite a frightening creature, isn't she?"

I attempted to respond, but couldn't find the words in this uncomfortable darkness. After a moment, Alec lightly laughed again and we were moving swiftly through the darkness.

After a little while, I could start to see some light up ahead and in a second or two, we were going through a heavy door into a lobby that looked like a traditional office reception area. It was so strange to see this modern office space inside the ancient underground tunnels that we had just moved through. I looked with my mouth hanging open.

Alec laughed slightly again and said, "Well one thing is for sure, human - you are good for a laugh."

I looked at him with a slight smile on my face and said, "Bella, the name is Bella."

Alec looked at me for a moment, shocked that I was able to come up with such a normal response and then said, "Alright, Bella, you ready to go meet the Volturi?"

Just then, my baby kicked me harder than ever before. Alec gasped as he registered what he had felt and looked at me again with complete shock.

Before he could collect himself to speak, I shakily said, "Yes, Alec, I have a lot to discuss with them. As I am sure you are now more than aware of."

Alec looked down at me and nodded once with a serious and worried expression on his face. He motioned wordlessly for Jane to follow. Jane looked at me in frustration, obviously wanting to understand what was going on as we moved towards a large door.

Alec took a breath and slowly opened the massive door and walked through it, still holding me in his arms. Suddenly, I felt a crowd of eyes on me expectantly. I took a deep breath and looked around the group to find the three people that I knew I needed to address. However, before I was able to get a word out of my mouth, a large figure moved silently towards me. Alec set me down gently and moved back a few steps to join his sister. Then, two others joined the first and I knew I was looking at the three other people in Carlisle's painting, the Volturi.

**All right, I know it was an evil place to stop but it was necessary. Volturi meeting coming up as soon as possible- once I finish editing : )**

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	9. Chapter 9 The Volturi

**A/N: Yes it's a really short chapter… I'm evil I know ;) More to come soon I promise :)**

**It really is short for a reason I promise… **

Chapter 9- The Volturi

Alec was the first one to speak up. The semi-circle of vampires standing around me all looked on with their cold crimson eyes as I was gently shoved nearer to whom I presumed was Aro.

"Master Aro, this human, called Bella, approached us at the bank. She looked at us fearlessly, and with understanding. She told us that she knew what we were and asked to see you, Caius and Marcus. I can smell other vampires on her. Jane and I thought it best to bring her to the council," Alec told him. Aro took a step forward and reached for Alec's hand, which confused me.

"So, she knows of us, but hasn't divulged the identities of the vampires who've broken the law," Aro noted. He released Alec's hand, and then motioned for him to continue.

"While in the reception area, I felt something in her stomach kick me with such strength that I knew there was much more going on here than a human who knew too much," said Alec swiftly, with a tone of remorse, and obvious discomfort. Alec looked at me apologetically for a moment, and then turned back to face his masters.

Wordlessly, Aro grabbed the hands of the two other members of the council. After another moment, he let go and almost froze in place. Then, just as suddenly, he glided across the short distance separating us and silently grasped my hand. His skin was like Eleazar's, the same powdery-like finish and the clouded-over eyes. His skin felt different from any other vampire I had touched and I was motionless with fear and nerves. After a moment, Aro's expression went from one that was passive with a slight hint of amusement to one of frustration. After a few more seconds, Aro let my hand go with a look of frustration clear on his ancient face.

Suddenly Aro half growled out at the other two, "I can't read her mind. She is unique. Was she immune to you as well, Alec?"

Alec nodded and said, "Master, I tried to use my power to blind her while we came here, but my power didn't work on her either. Jane's was also ineffective."

Unable to help myself, a small smile broke out over my face as I saw the small girl scowling fiercely.

Aro was back in front of me in a flash, almost screaming, "You knew our powers wouldn't work on you?"

I stepped back involuntarily, trying to keep my fear from showing.

Aro then softened his expression and looked at me with greater interest, taking a moment to pause before he spoke again, this time using a gentle and calm voice, "I am sorry my dear, you have truly surprised me and that is extremely rare for someone of my kind. For me, especially, this is doubly true. I can read minds through touch, you see, however your mind is completely hidden from me."

He looked at me expectantly. I took a few breaths, trying to will myself to calm down.

Finally, I whispered, "I didn't know that you had a power or that you wouldn't be able to use it against me. I only have met four vampires with extra powers, however all but one of them were able to use their powers with me. However, I believe I have an explanation for that. Someone I met was able to tell what powers another vampire would have. He told me that I was a mental shield and that it was rare for a human to have such a clear manifestation of their power. He said if I were a vampire, I would have a very strong gift."

Aro looked at me with a puzzled expression. He again reached for the hands of the other two members of the Volturi.

After a moment, he smiled and addressed me again, "You have met Eleazar then. Tell me, how is my good friend?"

I blushed and mumbled, "He is well. He and his mate Carmen are very kind and were extremely helpful to me. They lead me to you unknowingly. However, that is all I wish to say about my acquaintances in your world."

Aro looked at me long and hard for a moment and then said, "Well, now we have come to the heart of the matter. You told Jane and Alec to bring you to us. What is it that you want from the Volturi, child?"

Aro and Caius looked down at me with obvious interest. Marcus however looked at me with a passive, bored expression that seemed to be permanently plastered on his face. It was now or never and I needed to be brave for my child.

I drew in a deep breath, looked up at them with as brave an expression as I could manage, and said, "I am pregnant. The child I carry is not an ordinary child. The father of my baby is a vampire, and was one when the baby was conceived. I knew exactly what he was but I loved him. I love him still. The baby is developing at an astonishing rate, and is beginning to leave bruises on my stomach. I have no idea what to do, or how to handle this. I need help for me and my child."

When I finished my short speech, I looked up at the Volturi council, and then stepped back in confusion. All three of them looked down at me with shock and amazement. I looked around the room, and saw all the vampires that it contained staring at me, frozen in place.

The silent motionlessness lasted for what seemed like an eternity. Then Aro grabbed the hands of the men on either side of him and froze again. I could no longer stand on the cold hard stone. My back was killing me, as were my feet. Finally, when I allowed myself to sink to the floor, the vampires around me began to move again. Wordlessly, Alec came up behind me and picked me up off the floor. He drew a chair away from the wall and gently placed me in it, like I was made of the most fragile blown glass and I would break under the slightest pressure. Once Aro noticed Alec's movements, he began to smile at me with the look of a loving father. For some reason, this expression made me even less comfortable.

Aro drew in a large breath slowly and then finally said, "Bella, we will help you. This is an amazing era of new possibilities for us. We never knew such a thing was possible. You, my dear, have brought us a hope that we could have never dreamed of. You will be taken care of, and provided for. We do not know what to do yet, but we will find out, my dear. Alec? Can you make sure that she gets settled in a tower suite?"

Alec smiled and ushered me out of the room as Jane watched me walk away with disgust. I breathed a sigh of relief as I was led away from the council. They were going to help my baby. They were going to help me. Volterra was my new home.

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	10. Chapter 10 Growing Pains

**A/N- This was a hard chapter to write for many reasons. The main one being that I want to get back to Edward and so I didn't want to spend forever in Italy :)**

**Thank you to all my faithful reviewers :) You make me smile every time my phone says I have email :)**

**Let me know what you think!**

Chapter 10 - Growing Pains

A few hours later, I woke up from a long nap to a knock on my door.

"Come in," I quietly said, and the door slowly opened.

Alec and his sister, Jane, were standing there with my bag and other items from my hotel room in town. Alec came over, gently placed my things on the bed for me, and then backed up to stand by his sister.

After an awkward moment, I decided to interrupt the silence with, "Thank you, both. I really appreciate it."

Alec smiled at me as Jane's expression darkened.

I smiled sweetly at Alec as I addressed him, "I am going to need to eat something soon. I need to eat much more often than you do; however, my child's dietary requirements are a lot more like yours than mine. I would prefer not to consume human blood. I know it's possible to live on animal blood, so I was wondering if there was any way someone could procure some for me."

Alec looked at me with wide eyes, and Jane's scowl slipped into a look of shock for a moment.

"We will have to talk to Aro. W-we were not planning for this," Alec stuttered out.

Without another word or glance, both of them swept out of the room, shutting the door forcefully behind them.

I was so tired when they brought me into my room that I hadn't looked it over. Now, my eyes swept the walls. There were two large bookcases, containing a wide variety of literature, all old volumes that were covered in a thin layer of dust. The bed was a large four-post affair with curtains and luxurious linens. The floors were highly polished hard wood. The ceilings were very intricate. Everything in the room screamed wealth, privilege and age. There were two paintings on the walls. One was an ornately detailed depiction of Volterra at twilight. The other was covered for some reason. I pulled back the curtain and gasped in shock. There, on the wall, was a life-size depiction of Carlisle. I knew he had visited the Volturi in his younger years and had lived here for a short time, but I was not prepared to find pictures of him here, especially in my room. I wanted to ask Aro or one of the others about it, however, I did not want to let my connection with their family become known.

There was also a small writing desk next to the picture of Carlisle that contained a laptop computer. I was excited at this prospect. I wanted to make sure I kept some kind of link with the outside world, and kept my parents from looking for me until the trail of my disappearance went completely cold. I quickly pulled up the internet and created a bogus account. From this throw away account I emailed Renee and Charlie, letting them know that I was safe and that I had just needed to get away for a while. I told them that I loved them and that I would come home as soon as I could. I wrote a couple of things in each email so they wouldn't question who it came from, and then sent the messages. I began to surf the web somewhat, looking at news from the outside world, when I heard a soft knock at the door. I opened it and found Aro on the other side, smiling down at me.

Aro looked at me with a fatherly smile and sat down comfortably in one of the two plush chairs. I sat down opposite him and looked at the ancient leader of the Volturi with expectant eyes.

Finally, Aro said, "Alec came to me and told me about your unique dietary requests. We will take care of you my dear. I find your request for an alternative blood source amusing, especially given the room I have placed you in. Have you ever heard Eleazar mention the Cullen coven?"

Aro looked at me for a moment with an inquisitive look in his eyes. I froze the pleasant smile on my face and thought for a moment. The likelihood of Eleazar not mentioning Carlisle was slim, however, I was not sure I wanted to even acknowledge that I was aware of the Cullens, let alone give any hint to how well I knew them.

I finally decided that my diet request made it plain that I knew quite a bit about the vegetarian vampire lifestyle, and that Carlisle most likely would have come up in conversation. So I said, "Yes, Aro, he did mention his friend to me, however I have never had the pleasure of his acquaintance. He came up when we were discussing, um, diet options for your kind."

A look of disbelief flashed across the clouded eyes for a moment before the more jovial appearance returned.

Aro then motioned over to the covered painting on the wall and said, "Take a look. That is a painting of Carlisle. This was his room when he lived with us."

I steadily walked over to the painting and pulled on the cord to sweep the fabric out of the way. I looked at the painting for about five seconds and turned back to Aro with a forced smile on my face.

Aro began to speak again, "Well, my dear child, we have decided on a plan of action for you. We are going to do some research on your condition. There have always been rumors floating around our world that such things were possible, however, we had never seen such a case until now. We will send a small guard contingent to find out if the rumors we have heard are based in fact. We are going to help you however we can. I have decided to call my friend, Carlisle, in to help with the birth of your child if I can track him down. He has practiced medicine for centuries. Otherwise, we will have a human doctor come in to help. Carlisle would be my first choice, but we have not seen him in many years, and Demetri, our best tracker, is currently gone from the city, working on something else of greater importance. We would like you to consider something, however. Once your child is born you will have two options. You are a human who knows too much about our way of life. Normally, this would not be allowed. I am inclined to believe, however, that the vampire who did this to you was planning to turn you at some point. If that is not the case, please do not tell me. I have barely convinced my brothers to not go after the father of your child or push you to find out who he is. I am much more interested in you and your child to push the issue. If you choose to become a vampire, we will require a period of service from you. We do not turn people freely, Bella, especially ones with your level of potential. The other choice is for us to kill you after your child's birth, which we would do if that was your wish, but I would prefer to see you join us for a time, if not permanently. Of course, remaining a member of our group would be your choice after your time has been served."

I looked up at Aro, trying to wrap my brain around all that he had said. Aro had a weird look on his face, one that for some reason frightened me, although I could not figure it out at first. My choices were difficult. I could become a vampire, but to spend eternity apart from the love of my life would kill me. However, I did not want my child raised without me. I wanted my baby to have the right values. I knew that if he or she grew up here alone, they would not be taught a way of life that I agreed with. They would live a life completely different than that of the Cullens. I was not sure I wanted to end my life now that I was responsible for another.

Finally, I asked Aro, who was waiting for me with that same strange expression, "Aro, how long would I be required to serve the Volturi as a member of the guard?"

Aro looked at me, flashed a huge smile and his expression finally made sense. It was one of greed and power. He wanted me because of the power and abilities that he would have some form of control over. I tried to control my body, but my realization sent a shudder of dread through me.

Aro quickly said, "I'm sorry if I frightened you, my dear. I mean you no harm; I am simply out of practice with making humans comfortable around me. The period would be one of ten years, once you are through your newborn phase. As a newborn, you would have to be controlled and so you would be of no use to us until you were past your first year, at least."

I looked at Aro, trying to keep the expression of disgust off my face as I asked a few more questions of him. Aro would allow me to eat whichever diet I chose and would not force my child to serve in the guard. He also guaranteed me that unless he or she was completely uncontrollable or broke the law, they would never be under any kind of threat from the council. I finally agreed to Aro's proposal, and his face lit up like a child on Christmas morning as he welcomed me into the Volturi guard, and placed an almost-black cloak around my shoulders.

The next couple of weeks went by in a blur. I had doctors checking up on me constantly. They were completely baffled when they realized that their normal baby monitoring equipment would not work on my child. They monitored my progress by measuring my stomach to gauge roughly, how far along I was. The doctors had to be changed out quickly as they became suspicious of what the Volturi actually were. Aro and the council attempted repeatedly to find Carlisle and the rest of the Cullens, but were unable to. Demetri came back after ten days and joined the search, however, for the first time in his existence, he was unable to track them down, always missing them by mere hours. When I heard repeatedly about Demetri's failures, I would laugh to myself. Alice was keeping the Cullens away from the Volturi. Then, I began to wonder if Alice had seen me and what was going on. If she had, the whole Cullen coven would be here, in harm's way. The more I got to know Aro, the more he scared me. I began to wonder if I would have been safer in Alaska all along. Aro was a collector of talents because of the power that they provided him. I hoped that he would never catch up with Alice, Jasper and Edward. Finding Carlisle would expose them all, and so I was grateful that Alice wasn't seeing me, or was choosing not to come to Volterra for me. Maybe they had believed the story I told Kate. During the day, I was kept so busy that I could not think about Edward at all. However, at night while I laid there trying to fall asleep, I saw his face, heard his voice in my head, and cried until I had no tears left, missing the love of my life who no longer wanted me. Every night I had nightmares. Most of them were about me searching for him, and I would wake up screaming. The first few nights, someone would rush in to make sure I was ok, but after a while, they accepted my nightmares and left me be.

The Volturi guard did research for two weeks and finally brought home a couple of examples of others like my child. Both of them were immortal and had good information for us about what giving birth to my baby would entail. Naheul and his aunt were the more informative of the two. With great sadness, they informed me that the mothers of children like him did not live through the birthing process, as far as they knew. At this fact, I was in shock. What was I going to do if I did not survive long enough to be changed? After a long night considering my options, I decided to speak with the council about my problem. I did not want my child growing up without one of his or her two parents. I knew that if my life were forfeit, I would want Edward to raise our baby. With extreme determination, I faced the council. To my surprise, they agreed with me wholeheartedly. I still refused to reveal the father's name to them in case I did survive the birth process, but I told them that I would lock away a letter in my desk that on the event of my death, my little one could be sent home to his or her father. I knew that this would put the coven in danger, but I did not want my child raised by Aro.

After two weeks in the castle, I could no longer leave my bed. The baby had become much too strong. My stomach was covered with deep bruises and I had broken two of my ribs. I was constantly in pain, even though the doctors gave me every course of pain management that they considered safe for the baby. A human doctor was assigned to stay with me continually until the birth. He figured out the truth in mere days and they decided to keep him through the birth process. When I frantically asked what would happen to him, someone would pat my head and tell me not to worry about it. I continued to worry, but could do nothing for the man. I was concerned that he knew too much and would be killed once my baby was born, but I knew there was no recourse.

A couple days later, I reached my targeted size and the doctor notified Aro. The room was sealed off. After speaking with Naheul and his aunt, we knew that the child would normally attempt to remove itself using its own teeth. The council had decided that once I reached the correct size, they would do it themselves. I was assured that they had enough control to do what was necessary. The doctor drugged me with heavy amounts of morphine, and I slid into oblivion. The next thing I remember is waking to feel a burning sensation and teeth cutting into my flesh. I knew this feeling. It was the feeling of venom entering my system. The transformation process had begun. The pain then overwhelmed me and it was all I knew for what felt like an eternity. I wanted to be able to scream, to tell them to kill me, but something was holding me back. Slowly, my brain began to process with more accuracy and I had room to think of other things. I heard footsteps around me and a baby crying somewhere nearby. Through the pain, I rejoiced in the fact that my baby was all right. I heard voices and people moving around me. The fiery pain began to leave my fingers and toes and traveled with added intensity towards my heart, which began to beat like a helicopter.

I heard someone nearby say, "Get Aro, the rest of the council and guard. It's almost over."

My heart raced on and on, and I burned hotter than I had even in the beginning. My heart stuttered, beat twice more at a normal pace, and then stopped forever. The pain was instantly and completely gone. After a moment, I opened my eyes to my new life as a vampire.

Okay I know there are a lot of things I don't answer in here but there is a reason for it. The main one being that Bella has no clue what the answers are

Signed reviews get responses 100% of the time. Hit that review button please ;)


	11. Chapter 11 Newborn

**A/N: I promise not to spend too much time in Volterra. I am only doing what I consider necessary to the story. **

Chapter 11- Newborn

I looked around the room and saw so much more than I had as a human. The colors were intensified and I could see everything, including the dust floating in the air. Everything was enhanced. I knew there were others in the room with me, but I was completely overwhelmed by everything I was seeing.

Aro finally broke the silence with, "Bella? How do you feel?"

I looked over to him, smiled, and said, "I feel wonderful. I have never seen things like this before. I am somewhat overwhelmed right now."

Aro and the rest of the Volturi looked at me in shock.

"Bella, you should be suffering from extreme thirst, not noticing the change in your perception of the world," Aro said somewhat harshly.

I looked at Aro with confusion for a split second, until I realized that he was referring to the normal newborn's extreme blood lust. I was thirsty, of course. My throat hurt, however it was manageable and I was so much more interested in the changes around me.

I finally responded to Aro with, "I am somewhat thirsty, however it's manageable."

Aro smiled at me and said, "You are truly a wondrous creature, Bella. However it would make me feel better if you hunted before seeing your daughter."

I gasped, nodded, and walked towards them swiftly.

Once I neared the council I said, with complete confidence, "I agree, my daughter is half human after all and I want to see her as soon as possible. I hope you will still respect my wishes as far as hunting choices go. I would prefer to sustain myself on animals. I find the idea of killing humans repugnant."

I looked at Aro apologetically; he laughed and told Jane and Alec to accompany me.

As we left the castle, Alec turned to me and warned me, "Bella, we have to go through the city to get to the forest. You will need to hold your breath. You cannot slip up here in Volterra. It is an immediate death sentence. We will hang on to you, but you need to be careful."

I looked at Alec gravely, nodded, and then extended my hands to both of them. Alec eagerly grabbed my wrist and with a look of utter revulsion, Jane did the same. I tried to focus on Jane's dislike for me as we traveled out of the city to distract me from the humans I was about to encounter. Without breathing, I found resisting the humans around me very easy, as long as I ignored the sound of their blood moving through their bodies. I only tried to escape their grasp twice, and just momentarily when I lost my focus. I could not figure out what Jane held against me. She seemed to despise me completely. My very presence was enough to upset her. I decided that when we got back, I would ask Alec about it.

Once we were far enough away from the city, both of the twins released my hands, Alec smiled and said, "Go to it, Bella."

I grinned at them both and ran off into the forest.

Hunting was instinctual. I allowed my body to take over and do exactly what I needed to. I found that the carnivorous animals were much more appealing to my palate. After my first two kills, I began to get the hang of it and quickly finished up. I lingered for a few minutes, soaking in the outdoors until I heard Alec cautiously approach my location. I whipped around with vampire speed and smiled at him. I was a mess but at the moment, I couldn't bring myself to care.

Jokingly I asked him, "Want to give it a try? It's not that bad."

Alec's face wrinkled up in disgust and he rolled his eyes at me motioning me to follow him back to Volterra.

On the way back, they allowed me to travel without their hold, and I found that it was even easier to resist the people around me. When we got close to the castle, without warning, I took a small breath. The smell was mouthwatering, however, I was able to resist. I smiled to myself and Alec looked at me with a puzzled expression. I smiled again and drew in a deep breath to talk. Alec's eyes were wide and he looked ready to spring at me.

I laughed and said, "They do smell good, don't they?"

With that comment, I skipped back into the ground level entrance to the castle, with a dumbfounded Alec and Jane trailing behind me.

Once we were beyond the prying eyes of humans, I picked up my speed and ran as fast as I could to the main room. By this time, Alec was chasing after me, laughing, and even Jane let out a small giggle. In no time, we were in the main audience room and I was facing the council once again.

Aro asked about my hunting trip, but before I could say a word, Jane and Alec gave a full report. They spoke together, finishing each other's sentences, almost as if they were one person. When they got to the part about me breathing around the human population, Aro, Caius and Marcus tensed until Alec hurried on to explain my silly comment and amazing ability to resist them. Aro's face burst into a huge smile and even Marcus had a slight grin.

Finally, I addressed Aro saying, "Aro, Caius, Marcus: I know that the original intent was to allow me to go through my newborn phase before I started serving the Volturi. However, now I believe that I will not be forced to suffer the typical newborn blood lust. I think I am able to start serving now. Will you consider it?"

My reasons for the request were completely selfish. I wanted out of Volterra as soon as possible. The longer I was here, the more Aro would want me to stay on permanently. I could already feel my enhanced gift around me like a blanket. I knew that Aro found my potential talents extremely appealing, and I did not want to give him any more time than necessary with my new gifts at his disposal. There was something about him, underneath the smiles and refinement, that I did not trust. Aro grabbed the hands of the two other council members and they silently shared their thoughts with Aro.

After a few moments, Marcus spoke up for the first time ever, "Bella, my dear, we will consider your request but we would like to wait a few days to make sure that your amazing ability to resist human blood holds true. Would you agree to that?"

I smiled at them and nodded silently.

Finally, unable to put up with the niceties any longer, I looked at them with pleading eyes and said, "Can I see my baby?"

Aro smiled almost kindly, nodded, and led me out the door without another word.

I walked as fast as I could without stepping on Aro's cloak as I followed him down the hall. Finally, he stopped in front of a door and smiled at me.

"Your daughter, dear Bella, is beautiful and as talented as her mother. She communicates quite effectively already and has been begging to see you. She is also most anxious to find out her name. Have you selected one for her?" Aro asked, curiosity covering his face.

I nodded enthusiastically at Aro and said, "I have, but I would like to tell her first."

Aro smiled down at me and then stepped out of the doorway. As we walked, I considered what Aro had said about my daughter communicating already. This had to mean that she was not going to develop like a normal human baby in many ways. Her brain was going to be more like her father's than the human that I had been. I again marveled at the sheer amount of space I had in my head to reason and figure out things now that I was a vampire.

Hesitantly, I walked inside the room, holding my breath carefully. There, across the room in a nursemaid's arms, was a tiny bundle. The nurse was feeding her out of a metal cup, which was filled with what could only be blood. I carefully took a breath. My daughter's smell was strong, however she smelled like a mix between the best perfume and the most delicious food. I knew I was going to be able to hold her with no problems. The blood in the cup was another matter. It smelled like the pure fresh scent of humans. They were feeding her human blood! I turned towards Aro and looked at him, with the anger evident on my face. Aro looked back at me in confusion. After a split second consideration, I realized that he couldn't have known that human and animal blood smelled so differently, probably having never tasted animal blood in his whole existence.

Finally, I said, "Aro, why are you allowing them to feed my daughter human blood?"

By the end of my question, I was even more upset. This meant that he had tried to trick me and now I was going to have to wean her off the human blood and onto only animal blood.

Aro looked at me in stunned silence for a moment before he regained his composure and said, "Bella, how did you know?"

I looked up angrily and pointed to my nose.

To my shock, Aro laughed quietly and said, "That explains a lot. We will get her on the right diet, however this was easier. No humans died to give your child blood. She is drinking from our blood bank supply."

I relaxed slightly and took a few steps towards my little one. Suddenly, she wanted nothing to do with her food and was moving around in the woman's arms frantically. She then sighed and placed her hand on the woman's neck.

The woman murmured to her, "Ahh, I see sweet one, you want your mother."

The nurse looked up at me with a smile; then she stood and brought my daughter towards me. Just as I was getting ready to take my daughter from her, I looked down and gasped in shock. The little one was the size of a baby at least a month old already. She had a full head of bronze colored curls. The curls came from me, the hair coloring from her father. Her eyes were a deep chocolate brown; the same shade that mine had been when I was human. Her facial features were almost all Edward, with a little bit of me thrown in to make them look extremely feminine. I looked down at her in awe. She was the perfect mix of both of us. Then, gingerly I stretched out my arms and the nurse placed her into them gently. My arms fit her perfectly; it was as if I was made to hold her. Slowly, she reached her little pale pink arm towards my neck. When she touched me, it was as if a jolt happened and I suddenly saw Aro carefully pulling her out of my arms and my little one making an effort to find my face. While Aro held her close to me, she then showed me my human face and slowly morphed it into my immortal face. She was telling me that she knew who I was and had been waiting for me. I grinned down at my little girl and took her back into my arms, snuggling her into me slightly. Then she put her hand back on my neck and communicated that she wanted to know what her name was.

I bent down over my daughter and softly said, "Welcome to the world, Renesmee Carlie."

She smiled up at me, showing two rows of perfectly snow white teeth. I laughed and said, "Do you like your name, Renesmee?"

She giggled at me and then put her hand back on my neck. The scenes she was showing me were all ideas of happy. Then she began to relay the last few days of her life back to me through her thoughts.

My next few days were a blur. I spent most of my time with my small daughter. She was changing so quickly. I knew that this was going to happen from what we had learned, but it was still hard to watch as she grew every hour. Finally, after a week, Renesmee started taking her first full meals that contained pure animal blood and I was called to face the council.

I walked into the main room, wondering the reason for their official summons. I was told on the way that this was only done when something extremely important needed to be discussed. When I walked into the room, the whole guard was present along with the wives and their personal bodyguards. The wives were two small figures who were completely enveloped in their large black cloaks. Their movement was so slight and graceful that they seemed to almost float in the air, slightly above the ground. Everyone was wearing his or her official cloaks. I, however, had been in a hurry and neglected to put mine on. I suddenly felt underdressed. Smiling, the three members of the council moved towards me, stopping just short of the center of the room. I walked up to meet them. For a moment, their smiles brightened and then they looked over me to address the crowd.

In perfect unison the three said, "Welcome, Bella, our new sister, the newest protector of Volterra!"

At the end of their speech, they walked up and put a new cloak on my shoulders. My new cloak was a slightly darker shade of gray than even Alec and Jane, who wore the darkest cloaks of all until now. If I had still been human I would have blushed with the sudden recognition and the obvious esteem that Aro, Caius and Marcus felt for me. Then the rest of the guard cheered with slight enthusiasm and the formal part of the ceremony was over. Most of the group congratulated me on my placement, some more enthusiastically than others. The only one who was not happy for me at all was Jane. She took one look at Aro and I and then stormed out of the room.

Aro glided over to me when he saw the concerned look on my face, and said, "Do not fret my dear, Jane's problems are her own and have nothing to do with you. Welcome to the Volturi, dear one. Your training begins tomorrow. You will still have time in the evenings to spend with your little one, but we need to get moving. There is so much to get done and we don't want to waste a moment of it."

With that, Aro glided away to speak to someone else. Training to begin tomorrow? Welcome to the Volturi indeed.

**Instead of doing the full story from Edward's perspective, I am now considering doing it from various points of view depending on who I think would tell the story best. I know there will be some unanswered questions when I finish this that Bella just won't know the answers to and I would love to give you insight. Which would you rather? Let me know what you think :)**

**Review please. I really want to know what you think!**


	12. Chapter 12 Carlisle

**A/N: I really am not sure how you guys are going to feel about this chapter. *Crosses Fingers***

**Hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 12 - Carlisle (9 and a half years later)

I was flying quickly through the trees in a heavy forest. The woods around me seemed familiar, even though I had never seen them with my vampire eyes. I ran faster and faster. My body knew where I was headed, but as much as I thought about it, my mind could not figure it out. Suddenly, I burst through the trees into a perfectly round meadow that was lit by the full moon. For a moment, the beauty of the meadow distracted me. Then, a flash of the last time I had come to this place hit my mind and I sank into the grass and flowers, my whole body shaking with dry sobs as I thought of Edward. I tried to stop myself, get up and leave but my tears were too much. After a few moments, I heard something moving just beyond the tree line. Whoever it was moved around the forest as if they knew it well. They seemed to keep out of view purposefully.

Then, the most familiar voice that had haunted my waking dreams for so long now that I was no longer surprised by its velvety tones said, "Bella, my love come back to me. I love you and I need you with me always."

Then Edward stepped out of the trees and into the meadow. He walked toward me with his wonderful crooked smile plastered over his lips and I ran to him. The moment I reached him, I started kissing him with abandon. We were lost in each other for a few minutes until I heard an amused individual clear their throat in an almost comical fashion. I whipped around and saw Aro. I took a step towards him wanting to explain, when I heard the worst sound in the world. Edward was screaming in pain and agony behind me. I turned around to see a large fire with choking purple smoke. I screamed, opened my eyes, and was suddenly back in my room in Volterra.

I had these waking nightmares all the time. Becoming a killer for the Volturi in the name of justice gave me plenty of material to fuel my thoughts. Therefore, in the evenings when I remained quiet in my room, allowing my now grown daughter to sleep, I tried to relax as much as I could. However, most nights I would relax too far and go into a meditative state where I would get close to dreaming. As far as I knew, I was the only vampire who was able to have these waking dreams. Aro was completely perplexed by them. However, after all this time he had accepted them and was no longer surprised when I screamed out in the night. My waking dreams were always nightmares and they were always centered on Edward. Even after nine and a half years, I never stopped loving him. My heart was still his alone. I still felt like there was a huge hole in my now silent heart, and even though I did not need to breathe, the idea was still excruciating. Unfortunately, I had to breathe excessively often for my own liking. I relied far too much on my sense of smell.

This version of my dream was a new one. It was not some twisted version of the past; it seemed like something in my near future. I knew that there was no way I was going to be back in that area of the country and that the Cullens would never venture back there so soon after leaving. I also knew that I was no Alice and I did not have the power to see the future. Maybe the waking dreams based in reality were no longer as effective, and so my brain had conjured up a new version of Edward and losing him painfully again. It has been nine and half years since I became a member of the Volturi and I still missed Edward as much as I had since the day I woke in a hospital bed when I realized that my promise ring was gone, and so was he.

A few moments later I heard a soft voice say my name on the other side of the door. Swiftly but quietly I crossed the room and swung the heavy door open. On the other side stood Alec, looking like he was in a great hurry.

Alec took in a quick breath and said, "Bella, we have to go now. There is a mission of the utmost importance. The council has just learned of a large newborn army that is rapidly decimating some of the less inhabited areas of South America. We have to go deal with this now. Wake up Ness, let her know, and then follow me. We have to hurry before things get worse."

I gave Alec one short nod and walked over to my daughter.

"Ness, Ness, wake up!" I said loudly in my daughter's ear.

After a moment, Renesmee's eyes fluttered open and she looked up at me in surprise.

"Ness, I have an emergency mission in South America. We have to go take down a large newborn army. I will be back as soon as I can. Do me a favor and stay out of Aro's way as much as you can," I hurriedly said to her as I rushed around the room at vampire speeds, packing up what I would need.

Once I had everything ready to go, I dropped my bag by the door and moved swiftly over to my daughter. There was very little chance that anything would go wrong but the chance did exist that we would encounter powers that could best our own, so I never left Volterra without telling my daughter how much I loved her.

So I said, "Ness I love you so much. I'll be home to you as soon as I can. You know where the letter is in the event I don't make it back."

Ness rolled her eyes at the mention of the letter. She knew it was important, but I still reminded her about it every time I left. The letter contained the real name of her father and their family. I had already told the council that if anything were to happen to me, they were responsible for sending my daughter home to her father. I knew it was the only place she would be safe if the worst happened and I was destroyed. Swiftly, I grabbed my bag and followed Alec down the hall to the main chamber.

When we arrived, Aro swiftly stood up from his throne-like chair and walked over to me.

Gently Aro hugged me and kissed both of my cheeks before addressing the now fully assembled guard with, "As I am sure you are all now well aware, we have a newborn problem that needs to be taken care of. You will go to South America, flying into Rio de Janeiro. Once there, you will run to a remote location in the jungles. There you will find a newborn army numbering close to thirty we believe. A vampire named Maria is controlling them. From the intelligence we have gathered, she is building an army to march on Volterra. We need to eliminate the threat now, before they are able to make the trip to our fair city."

At Maria's name, I gasped. I was fairly certain from Aro's description that she was the same Maria who had turned Jasper. Although I knew very little about Edward's adopted brother's life before the Cullens, I was aware that she was very violent and her newborns would be well trained.

Doing something I had never dared before, I spoke up and addressed the group, "I have some familiarity with this vampire's reputation. Maria will have trained her newborns, probably in a military fashion. These men and women were probably snatched from different military installations. She would also actively search for vampires with potential powers. This may be more than a simple newborn army and we may need to do some additional observation before deciding on the best plan of attack. In addition, she is extremely skilled, knowing when to attack and when to run. She survived the newborn wars by creating carefully concealed military-based groups."

Suddenly, all eyes in the room were on me with expressions ranging from shock and awe to respect and disbelief.

Aro looked at me quizzically and said, "Bella, do you care to share your source for information?"

I hesitated for a moment and then carefully said, "One member of a coven that I used to know was created by Maria and worked for her back in the days of the American Civil War. At that point, she was in Texas. His job was to train her newborns and make them ready for battle. Even though he left, I am sure he has been replaced by someone just as competent."

Aro looked at me for a moment, wanting to press for more information. This was the most I had said about my life before Volterra and I could see the raging curiosity in his eyes. I looked at Aro with a determined expression and slowly shook my head back and forth. I was not going to say anything more on the matter. This mission was going to be very dangerous indeed. After a few more comments and some slight changes to our orders in response to my information, we made our way to the darkly tinted cars and zoomed towards the airport.

The flights seemed to take forever. We flew into New York and then caught a connecting flight to Rio. We were on planes or in airports for over a day. This was the worst part of being sent on missions because you spent so much time traveling and lost in your own thoughts on the plane ride. Usually Alec sat with me in the plane, much to Jane's annoyance. Alec and I had stuck up an unlikely friendship. He was a good fighter and knew his purpose; however, unlike his sister he still had a heart and compassion for those we were forced to bring to justice. Unless there was a direct order from the council, when they were not present Alec always used his gift to help ease the suffering of the vampire that had been sentenced to death. Alec never pressed me for more than friendship, but I could tell that he cared for me deeply. The closer Alec and I became, the more Jane despised me. Alec had tried repeatedly to reason with his sister, but she would not listen. My personal opinion told me that Jane did not understand it because she completely bought into the Volturi. She loved the kill and her aggressive power. I often wondered where her sick enjoyment stemmed from and what she had been through to twist her so. She looked sickly excited every time she was allowed to use her skill and I knew she futilely tried it on me, hoping to catch me at a time when I had pushed my shield completely away from me. In my training I had learned how to do this, however once I had mastered it, I never did it again. I did not want Aro to be able to see my past and the life I had led before I became a member of the Volturi. I knew without a doubt that Aro would use it against me to hold me as a member of the guard. I was already fearful that he was going to use my daughter in that way.

Finally, we arrived in Rio. The moment our plane hit the ground we were off and running. It was dark outside and we knew we only had a short time to make it out of the city before the sun came up. Although our cloaks usually kept our skin covered in sunlight, we didn't like to use them that way if we could help it. We knew that all it would take would be one slip up and then we would expose the whole vampire world and ourselves. After an hour of running at top speeds, we got close enough to the location where Maria was and stopped. I blocked them from any mental attack and we stealthily moved in to run some surveillance. We placed ourselves up on a close mountain and looked down into Maria's camp. The numbers we had heard in Volturi were not high enough. Maria had close to fifty vampires in her possession. Most of these were newborns by the look of them. Newborns had brighter red eyes than traditional vampires could manage even if they completely gorged themselves on human blood. The thought of tasting human blood made me shiver slightly as we looked on. After a while, we were able to figure out some form of strategy. This was going to take some serious time and finesse. This was not going to be a fast, easy mission.

Almost three months later, we were finally close to completing our mission. The only thing we had left to do was kill Maria and a couple members of her guard that remained. We killed off her army in small pieces whenever she sent vampires to patrol or find out where the others had disappeared. Maria knew after a while what was happening but she could not guard her new creations all the time.

As we planned strategy, I announced to the group, "Maria is mine. I owe an old friend this debt. I want to be the one to take her out and burn her."

Everyone looked up at me in shock. Jane's face spread into a slight smile and Alec's face had an expression of horror that he quickly covered up.

I took in a slow breath and attempted to explain myself, "This vampire caused my friend a lot of grief. He left her because he found his mate. His mate is my best friend and we were all so close that I consider them family. I know that Maria has tried to ruin their lives on many occasions. I want to see her pay for the pain she has caused my friends."

They all looked at me again with a new sense of respect. Most of the guard thought that I was weak and ruled by what was left of my human emotions. Silently the vampires around me nodded their consent and we modified the strategy slightly to take into account that I was going to take Maria out.

Slowly, we entered the clearing where Maria was hiding and moved in perfectly practiced formation, every step synchronized. When we reached the other side of the clearing, we saw a small cave. Outside the cave stood two large and impressive newborn vampires. The rest of the guard made short, quick work of them. Then, we moved boldly through to the larger inside of the cave. Maria was huddled against the wall, whimpering in fear. We approached her, and then read her crime and sentence. Alec went to numb her mind and I decisively shook my head at him, motioning him to go back. I wanted her to feel this for Jasper.

I stepped forward on my own, leaned down to whisper in her ear so softly that only she would be able to understand, and said, "This is for Jasper Whitlock and what you stole from him. He never wanted the life that you forced on him. I will avenge my brother."

Maria looked up at me with wide eyes and whispered my name as a question. I nodded grimly at her and without further ado, separated her head from the rest of her body. Once we finished tearing the body to pieces and burning it, we ran away from the jungle wilderness towards Rio and Volterra. I was going back home to my daughter.

When we arrived back at the castle, I moved at vampire speed through the halls and located my daughter quickly by her scent. Once I found her, I threw my arms around her and hugged her with everything I had. Ness laughed at me and after a moment stepped back to look at me.

After a moment of staring at each other, I smiled at her and asked, "So, did you have fun while I was gone?"

She smiled back at me and excitedly said, "Yah, Mom, I had a great time. We had visitors while you were gone. Two other vampires that had eyes like yours. One of them was Carlisle Cullen and the other was a new member of his coven named Garrett. I guess Garrett is only with them for a short time. He is going to be moving to another coven soon, after meeting his mate in Alaska. Garrett had already agreed to accompany Carlisle here, though and so he did. He joked and said that he was excited for any chance to get away from the wedding planning."

I looked at my daughter in shock. However, apparently she was so engrossed in telling her story that she didn't notice. Carlisle had been here in Volterra. I was suddenly thankful for the length of our mission to South America. Running into Carlisle would have been awkward and difficult. He would have recognized me, which would have forced me to face Edward after all these years.

As I thought, Ness continued, "I guess he has a large coven of vampires who eat the same way you do, but he called them his family, not coven. From what Aro saw, Carlisle is completely devoted to them. Carlisle found me completely fascinating. He didn't know that such a thing was possible, and was sorry. that Aro had not been able to contact them about my birth. Carlisle kept staring at me and I finally asked him about it. He told me that I reminded him of his son, Edward. That his hair color was the same as mine, but my eyes were identical to someone else's he had known, and then for a minute, Carlisle started to cry. It was very strange, Mom. I liked Carlisle a lot, though. I promised to come visit him someday once we are free of Volterra."

Needing to know, I quickly asked, "Did you tell him my name?"

Renesmee looked at me strangely for a moment before saying, "No, Mom. In fact, Aro made it clear that I was not to use your name. I don't understand why."

I was curious about Aro's unusual request, but decided to worry about it later because I was hungry for any more information she might have about our absent family.

I rapidly spat out, "Did he say anything else of his family?"

Ness looked at me oddly for a moment.

I quickly came up with something and said in a calmer voice, "I have heard so much about all of them. I was curious about the family."

Ness breathed a long sigh and said, "Yah, he told me all about his family. They live in the state of Washington, right outside a city called Olympia. His daughter Alice is a fashion designer. She loves to shop and design clothing. He said that I would get along with her famously."

I grinned at this. My daughter loved to shop almost as much as her aunt did, at least the last time I saw her.

Ness continued with, "Jasper is Alice's mate; I guess he used to be a very happy guy, but Carlisle said that some kind of tragedy hit their family almost ten years ago and ever since Jasper is almost always sad. Rosalie is another daughter. She is gorgeous, apparently, and loves cars, and in the last couple of years she has designed her own line of cars that is currently about to roll out on the market. Her mate is Emmett I think. Carlisle said he tries to be happy for the family; but most of the time when he is on his own, he is a very sad person. Carlisle said they had all lost someone very dear to them and when she was gone, it severely affected the family. And then the other son Carlisle mentioned, Edward, used to be a musician, but now he spends his days and nights locked away in his room, only leaving to hunt. His mate disappeared a long time ago and he looked for her everywhere before settling into a deep, dark depression. I guess he has contemplated coming here to ask the Volturi to take his life but cannot get past his sister, Alice, who can see the future. The last member of the family beside Garrett is Esme, Carlisle's wife. They love each other very much. I could see it in his eyes. Apparently, Esme mothers the whole group, however, she is also sad at the loss of her future daughter, Edward's missing mate."

Pleased with herself at remembering all of it, Ness looked up at me and smiled. I looked back at her and forced one as well. I needed to get out and be alone. I had to process all this away from my little one's sharp eyes.

I came up with a quick excuse about needing to report to the council and ran from the room at vampire speeds. I ended up in the forest outside Volterra. When I knew that I was finally far enough away that no vampires would hear me, I broke down into gut wrenching sobs. Edward and his family had moved on. Edward had found another. He had fallen in love and wept over the loss of whoever she was. The girl that Kate had mentioned was much more than a mere distraction. I was suddenly furious, betrayed, and sad all at once. Whoever this woman was, she had been for him what I could not be. I hated the fact that it was so easy for him to move on from me. He truly had never really loved or wanted me. Jasper's attack on me had been his excuse to get away. He had asked me to promise to marry him out of guilt because he had slept with me. The puzzle pieces all fell into place and created a nasty image for me. I had told myself this was the case repeatedly, but now, being confronted with the idea of this other woman that Edward loved, it was finally sinking into my head and heart. I sat there on the forest floor and completely lost track of time. I had no idea what was going on around me besides my own grief. The hole in my chest was wide open and bleeding again, worse than it ever had. After some time had passed, I heard the soft steps of another vampire behind me. I whipped around and saw Alec behind me. Alec looked at me and after a split second recognized the pain etched so deeply in my face. Swiftly, he crossed the remaining distance and wrapped his arms around me, cradling me into him. I turned my head into his chest and broke down into dry sobs again.

Once I finally calmed down, I focused on Alec's face. His expression was one of agony. He hated seeing me like this, especially since he knew it was over someone I loved dearly. I knew that Alec had feelings for me; however, he had never expressed them directly. I was so thankful for the friendship he had given me and was going to miss him when I left Volterra.

I carefully said, "Thank you Alec, for being here for me. I am going to miss you when I leave Volterra, my friend."

I knew I had to communicate to him again that all I wanted from him was friendship and that I was not able to give him anything more than that. Edward was lost to me forever, but my heart would not allow me to love someone else. I didn't know if I would ever be able to love again. The expression on Alec's face at my statement was painful. He seemed to understand exactly what I was saying. He looked at me long and hard before he nodded once and ran from me as fast as he could. I knew he was going to need time to get over me and accept the fact that I was actually going to leave. I only had three months left to serve in the guard and it was time to tell Aro that I wouldn't be staying.

**We are getting closer to Edward and the Cullens I promise. The dreams at the beginning of this chapter were one of the few major differences from SM's writing I have done with this story. I chose to give his this ability because her dreams were such a huge part of her life before she was turned. **

**Let me know what you thought of this chapter *hides***

**I love reviews so please be kind, leave a comment behind ;)**


	13. Chapter 13 Facing the Past

**A/N: Sit back and get comfy.. this chapter is LOONNNGG :) Again a hard chapter to write… balancing this was tough. How much to explain and what to leave out for now… get ready for major plot…. Hope you enjoy :)- Jenn**

Chapter 13 - Facing the Past

Once I was back inside the castle walls, I went looking for Aro. He was in conference with the rest of the council. When the council met, the center area of the castle was emptied so that the few words they said would not be overheard. I walked towards the chamber and paused at the door.

I heard Aro say my name, and waited. He continued with, "Her time of service to us is almost up. Bella is truly the jewel in our collection. We cannot afford to lose her. What can we do to keep her here?"

The silence that followed was painful. They were trying to find a way to keep me with the guard after my term was up. I had never liked all the methods the Volturi used, but this was the first time I had truly seen them use their power in such an obvious, negative and controlling manner.

"Well it's settled, we will take Renesmee from her after this mission to Washington if she can follow through there. We will use her daughter as leverage," Aro said nonchalantly.

I moved away from the door as silently as possible. Once I knew I was out of hearing range, I ran to my room and bolted the door behind me.

Once I had closed Ness and I in our small room, I put one finger over my lips and looked frantically at my daughter.

I breathed in and out a few times and then said in a controlled voice, "Ness, let's go hunting. I am famished."

With a terrified look on her face, Ness nodded silently at me. We ran from the castle hand in hand.

Once we were far enough away from Volterra that there was no chance we would be overheard, I said, "We have to get you out of Volterra without arousing the council's suspicion. They are going to take you from me after my next mission in order to force me to stay in the guard. I'm going to attempt to take you with me. We are going western America, hopefully close enough to the Cullens that I can get you to them safely. If I cannot take you with me, you need to go shopping for a whole day and use the chance to escape Volterra. Put as much distance between yourself and the city as possible and once you think you are safe, go and find Carlisle."

Ness looked at me in shock and disbelief, attempting to process what was going on. Aro was like a lovable uncle in her eyes. She knew I was telling the truth, but it was still hard for her to believe. The life we had lived here in Volterra was the only one she had ever known. I knew she would grow to love the Cullens and that her life would be much better there. I had guarded her as much as I could from Aro and the rest of the group, but she needed to know now how dire the situation really was. After a long discussion on how we would accomplish it, we hunted and then went back to the city to face the council.

Immediately upon entering the castle, I was confronted by Alec.

Hurriedly he said, "Aro has been looking for you both intently. Our new mission has been pushed forward. All we know is that we are flying to the Pacific Northwest in the United States. The rest of the details will be revealed to us upon our arrival. Before we leave for our mission, though, Aro wishes to speak with you alone."

I nodded once at Alec and walked purposefully towards the main chamber. As I entered, Aro told everyone to leave except for the rest of the council. The thought quickly crossed my mind that they were vulnerable here and now and I could take them out. However, I needed to get Nessie away from here before I faced the Volturi with their recent betrayal.

After a long moment Aro spoke, "We have one final mission for you, Bella. After this mission, you are free to leave us. I only ask that you report back here after your mission, unless of course you have reconsidered your decision and wish to remain a part of the guard?"

All three members of the guard looked at me with great interest. Slowly with a look of some regret plastered on my face, I shook my head no. Aro dismissed me and turned back to the rest of the council.

This would be my only chance, so I spoke up and said, "Aro? I have a request to make."

All three of the ancients turned slowly to look at me.

I took a deep, calming breath and said, "Aro, the location of our next target is at least generally near my human home. I would like to take my daughter with me. I want her to see where I grew up and learn about her family history. It will only take a day or two longer than the mission I believe. We can head back separately, if you like, so the rest of the guard is not detained."

Aro grabbed the hands of the other two and held them for a long moment.

Slowly, and with great reluctance, Aro said, "Bella, my dear, I can see no reason to not grant your request, however, I remind you that you still need to return before you are released from the guard."

I smiled, nodded enthusiastically at Aro as I said, "Aro I would never leave without at least saying good bye. The Volturi have done so much for me. It would be remiss of me to leave without a word. I promise that I will return afterwards. You have my word."

Aro looked at me long and hard again.

I simply smiled at him, and finally he said, "Then go in peace my daughter, and take your child with you. We will see you both soon."

I walked up to all three of them and hugged them, much to their surprise. I stepped back and smiled at them all before turning to exit the room.

Once I was outside the chamber, I sank down against the wall for a moment and savored my victory. I was going to get my little one away from these monsters. After a moment, I flew to my room and told Ness to pack because she was coming with me. Nessie simply smiled and packed her bags as fast as her half-vampire limbs would allow. In a few hours, my daughter would be safely out of the clutches of the Volturi and back with her family. I wasn't sure how we were going to find the Cullens that quickly, but I knew that once we did, they would take care of her. As we left the room, I reached into my desk and grabbed the aged letter, pressing it into my daughter's hand.

She looked at me with concern as I said softly, "Just in case, my dear."

A few hours later, we were standing in the airport waiting for our flight. Alec came over to me and we passed the time in casual conversation. Suddenly, about a half hour before the plane was due to start boarding, Alec asked me to follow him. Intrigued, I nodded and wordlessly followed through the maze of people. Finally, we were standing at the opposite end of the terminal.

Alec looked up at me wistfully, breathed in slowly and said, "Bella, I need to tell you something. I already know what you are going to say, but if I don't try, I'm going to regret it for forever. I will plague myself with thoughts of what might have been. Bella, I'm in love with you, completely, totally, and irrevocably in love with you. I need to know how you feel, even if you don't feel the same."

As he spoke, the look in his eyes went from wistful to one of pure agony. He was very sincere and meant every word. Alec was such a dear boy. I cared very deeply for him; however, I only felt friendship for him. I didn't want to hurt him, but I knew I had to tell him the whole truth.

I closed my eyes, took in a long deep breath, and then said, "Alec, you are very dear to me. However, I only look on you as the closest of friends. My heart has always belonged to someone else. Once I leave Volterra, I am finally going to confront him. He deserves to know his daughter, and I need closure. I need to hear from his lips that even though I'm a vampire, he no longer loves me. Alec, please understand. I care for you, my friend, but only as that - a friend, nothing more. I wish things were different, but I cannot change my heart."

With that, I wrapped my arms around him. We stood there for a moment, holding each other, until I heard our flight called. Alec looked up at me for a moment and his expression changed into one of resignation and acceptance. We walked towards our flight in silence.

The flight seemed to last forever. Jane and Alec sat across the aisle from Ness and I. Occasionally, I could feel Alec's eyes burning into me with the pain he was feeling at my rejection. The second he would look away, Jane would focus on me and try to use her gift on me without effect, as she had for years. She looked ready to kill me. She knew how badly I had hurt her brother and hated me for it. I tried to ignore Jane as much as possible, however, she started to stare at Ness with a sickly sweet grin and I knew that she was about to take her frustration out on my daughter. I growled at her softly and threw my shield around Ness. Jane immediately tried to attack my daughter and growled when she realized that I had anticipated her moves. Alec finally clued in to what was going on and shot a quick apologetic look at me before he started whispering in anger to his sister. Jane's expression slowly changed from one of rage, to an apologetic one.

Then, to my surprise, Jane turned to me and softly said, "You still love her father, don't you?"

I tried to speak but all I could do was nod at Jane while I attempted to keep myself from breaking into dry sobs. He had betrayed me and probably never truly loved me, but even after all that I still loved him more than my own life. I turned back to look at Jane and was in shock when I saw her in Alec's arms, her body shaking as though she were crying. After a few minutes, she quieted and asked Nessie to go sit by Alec for a few minutes. I stared at Jane intently as she sat beside me, trying to figure out the sudden mood swings.

Finally, she began to speak so fast that only a vampire could understand, saying, "Bella, I am sorry I have been so cruel to you. I hated you from the moment you walked in the castle. Then, when I knew my brother was falling in love with you, I hated you even more. To me, you were a rival, taking my place as Aro's most prized possession, and the Volturi are all that I have left. After that, when you rejected Alec, I swore I was going to kill you. He did not deserve to suffer at your hand. I realize now why you rejected him, and I can no longer hate you. We have more in common than you might think. We have both lost the loves of our lives. I fell in love with a fellow member of the guard. His name was Eleazar."

I gasped in shock. She was in love with Eleazar? The one from the Alaskan coven?

Jane read the shock on my face, looked back at me and said, "That's right, you know him don't you?"

I merely nodded and motioned for her to continue.

Jane took a deep breath and resumed, "I loved Eleazar completely. He warned me from the first time that I made my affections known that he did not care for me as much as I did for him. However, after some time, he decided to be with me. I was so happy I could fly. We were joined as mates with the blessing of the council and we lived very happily for a time. Eleazar felt the need to warn me repeatedly that he cared for me deeply, but he thought something was missing. I ignored his warning. I felt that in time, he would learn to love me the way I adored him. However, thirty years to the day that we had been blessed by the council, Carmen stepped into the castle and my life fell apart. At first Eleazar tried to deny his feelings for the sweet Spanish woman, but after some time he approached the council and told them the truth. After much deliberation they allowed him to leave with Carmen, as long as he told me the truth first."

Suddenly Jane stopped talking and her body began to shake with silent sobs. After a moment, I awkwardly wrapped my arms around her to comfort her.

After a few moments, Jane stopped shaking, looked up at me and shakily said, "Eleazar came to me after talking to the council. He took me in his arms in a way he had not since Carmen showed up. I looked up at him and told him that I loved him for the last time. He wrapped his arms around me and gently reminded me that he cared for me deeply, but not in the way I loved him. His voice broke and told me that he had fallen in love with someone else with the intensity that I felt for him. I looked up at him in shock as he explained about his love for Carmen. Then he told me the thing that turned me into the creature I am today. He told me they were leaving and that he would never see me again. Then he kissed me, set me on the bed and ran out of the room. I never saw him again."

Jane broke down again. Wordlessly, Alec got up, scooped his sister into his arms, and took her back to their seats after allowing Nessie to take hers. No one spoke the remainder of the flight into Portland. I had seen many odd couplings in the vampire world. Physical age was not a factor for most vampire couples, and even though most tended to gravitate towards vampires near their own physical age, it was not unusual to come across a pairing like Eleazar and Jane. Due to the laws against immortal children all of these pairings were really on equal footing and no one was ever with someone who was truly too young . Lately, Aro had been worried about Ness and her potential mate, but my daughter had never found a boy that she truly fell for. Lost in my thoughts the rest of the flight, the plane landed before I knew it in Portland, and the familiar landscape was in front of me. It took all the strength I had not to burst into tears.

We checked into the resort, and found a small package waiting at the front desk for us. Jane grabbed it and we walked back to the suites that had been prepared for us. Once we all were settled in, we went to meet in Jane and Alec's suite to find out what our instructions were. The only other time I could remember getting our instructions like this was not a pleasant memory. I was concerned that what they were going to ask us to do would be reprehensible. Most of the time I saw the need for our role in the vampire world, but I had also seen the council abuse their power. I hoped that we were not doing something I would regret.

Once we were all assembled, Jane opened the envelope that had been at the front desk and slid the contents out. Inside there was a DVD and a note.

Jane opened the note and with a monotone voice read, "My dear ones, your target is on this DVD. On it, you will hear all their abilities and what you will need to do to defeat them. I do not want Renesmee involved in the fighting at all. She needs to remain at a safe distance. I warn you that this assignment is tricky. Please be careful and bring all of yourselves back to us. Anxiously awaiting your arrival, Aro."

Then, without a pause, Jane walked over to the TV and put in the DVD. The three members of the council stood before us and told us all about our targets. The more they spoke, the more my heart was filling with dread. Everything they were saying was all too familiar to me. Then the pictures began and I could not deny it anymore. We were going to kill the Cullen family. Just as it sunk in, the most perfect vampire face was on the screen. Edward was staring back at me but not with the laughing perfect eyes I remembered; now he looked haunted and hollow. Whoever the girl he'd been chasing was, she had completely torn him apart. Once the pictures finished, the DVD ended and I stared at the screen in shock until I realized that everyone's eyes were on me.

Finally, Alec spoke up. "Bella, are you all right?"

His voice was anxious and terrified. I forced myself to remain composed. I looked at them all with a smile plastered on my face. Lying as a vampire was much easier than it ever was as a human. I knew how to make myself look happy when it was necessary, even though I was dying on the inside.

With a steady but dead voice, I said, "I'm fine. I am somewhat concerned about our strategy however. They are going to be difficult. I am going to have to maintain a shield over all of us, the whole time."

Part of me somewhat smiled at this internally. I knew that there was no way my shield would be able to stop Jasper or Alice. The only one I would affect would be Edward. At that thought I stopped. There was no way I could fight them. Even after all that had happened, I loved the Cullens too much to ever destroy them. I knew, though, that if I defected, there was no way Aro would let me get away with it. I realized then that I had not heard one single mention of their crime. I could start there.

Finally, I calmed myself enough to say, "What was their crime? Somehow I missed that."

Everyone looked at me with various levels of discomfort.

Finally, Alec mumbled, "The video didn't mention what their crime was."

I whipped out my cell phone with vampiric speed and dialed Aro's personal line.

Once I heard him on the other side of the line, I put on a fake sweet voice and said, "Aro, this is Bella. I was wondering something about our new targets. You neglected to mention their crime. What was it? Shouldn't we know what they are guilty of before we kill them? Shouldn't we be looking for evidence to substantiate their crime?"

I took a slow, even breath and waited for Aro's reply. This was the typical way things were done on the guard, so I knew that I was not breaking protocol to ask these questions of him. Usually we had all this information before entering a fight.

With an oddly uncomfortable tone in his voice, Aro finally replied, "Bella, my dear, they are a very large and powerful coven. While you were gone on your last mission, their leader Carlisle came to visit us in Volterra. I read the mind of one of their coven members, Garrett. What I saw disturbed me greatly. They have chosen to ally themselves with the children of the moon. The werewolves are our natural enemies. An action like this only means one thing. They will eventually try to overthrow Volterra. I know that your daughter is fond of Carlisle and Garrett, however this cannot be allowed, my dear."

Almost too quickly, I came back with, "Of course not Aro, someone who allies themselves with true werewolves should not be allowed to continue this practice. If we run into the wolves?"

Aro gave a hard laugh and said, "Take them out, just watch out for their teeth. Be careful, my dear."

Then I heard a click on the other end of the line and the call ended.

The whole group had heard what Aro had said. We knew how to deal with children of the moon of course. We had hunted them before in Europe. We had no idea that they could ally themselves with anyone. Suddenly, a flash of a conversation came back to me and in my mind, I heard Jacob Black telling me the legends of his tribe. I gasped and all the eyes in the room were on me again.

Finally, I spat out, "I grew up in this area of the country. I don't think we are dealing with true children of the moon. The Quileute tribe is not far from here. In their histories, they tell of the cold ones and their wolf ancestors. The tribe shape shifts into wolves. The form is just a coincidence. They do however have the power to destroy a vampire. Avoid their teeth at all costs."

The whole guard looked at me in amazement. I was never known to be someone who had this much strategic information.

I laughed slightly and said, "What? You're in my neck of the woods now."

I threw them all a brilliant smile and quickly left the room, dragging Renesmee with me.

As I ran away from the hotel, I considered calling Aro again and explaining that the Quileutes were not true werewolves but for some reason, I knew this would not matter to Aro. He would still want the Cullen clan dead. Their size and power was the real problem. Aro and Caius had ordered all these deaths because they felt threatened. The whole idea made me sick.

Suddenly, I knew we were being followed. I whipped around to see Jane and Alec on my tail. I motioned them to follow me and ran even faster towards the woods. Before I knew it, we were under the tree cover and far enough away from the hotel that we had no chance of being overheard. Slowly, I turned to the three of them and tried to talk. Instead, I broke down into tears. I couldn't kill the Cullens, not even for my freedom. They were my family. Suddenly I had two cold pairs of arms, and one very hot set of arms, encircling me.

Finally, Jane spoke up, "Bella, something is wrong here. I know that this is about more than being near home."

I looked up at them all and slowly nodded my head. I needed to tell them the truth, finally. I knew the only way I was going to be able to protect the Cullens was with their help. Then suddenly, Jane's face went tense and she pulled another envelope out of her cloak.

In a choked voice she said, "I have special instructions from Aro. I forgot about them until now."

Silently, she opened the flap and began to read. Her mouth turned into a small oval and her expression was one of horror.

Finally, she said in a dead voice, "They have never gone this far before. I cannot believe the council would do such a thing. We are really going after the Cullens to bring back Alice, Jasper and Edward as part of the guard. We are going to kill the rest."

I drew in a sharp breath and a loud growl escaped between my teeth.

Finally, I said, "The accusations against them are false, although I think Aro's letter makes that more than clear. This is a power grab, plain and simple. The people they have chosen to ally themselves with are not Children of the Moon. They are a shape shifting local Native American tribe. The wolf form is merely a coincidence. However, this is about power and the size of their coven, not their allies. We cannot do this. It is wrong. I will not kill innocents because Aro covets their powers. I will not touch this family, for family they are."

The other three looked at me with shock and awe written over their faces.

Finally, in a heartbroken voice I quietly said, "The Cullens are my family. My other family. Edward is the love of my existence and your father, Ness. I will not touch them. I cannot. If it comes down to it, I will fight against the guard to keep them safe. The only person who matters more to me than them, is you, Ness."

All three of them had frozen looks of shock and horror on their faces. I sunk down into the ground and began to cry again. As my body shook, part of my brain began to think. The only way we were going to get through this without their deaths was to out the council to the whole guard, and then defy their orders. As I quieted, I began to form a plan.

"I need to know now. Which side will you take? I have a plan to help them. I know that you know what the council is asking of us is completely wrong. I will defy them one way or another. I was going to leave Ness here with the Cullens anyway. Aro has many devious plans of late. He has become completely consumed by power. He was going to kidnap Renesmee, using her against me to keep me as part of the guard when we returned from this mission. I was going to leave her with the Cullens to protect her from Aro and to give me a way to escape," I told them all rapidly.

Suddenly, Jane and Alec spoke up as one voice, "We will not allow this to happen. The time has finally come. The council must be stopped."

Renesmee then said, "I will not allow my family to die. Aro and the council are wrong."

With that, we sat down and began to plan.

An hour later, with grimly determined expressions, we left the comfort of the woods to complete our plan. We were going to warn the Cullens and then we would return to the guard. We would not fight against them. When the guard decided to confront them, I would separate from the group with the excuse of taking Renesmee to a safe location, far away from the fighting. I would then run Ness to the Cullens and return to the guard. When we confronted them, if the guard did not see how wrong Aro's intentions were, then Jane, Alec and I would fight with the Cullens. Suddenly, I was thankful that Aro had not sent Chelsea to fight with us. She would have sensed our division and renewed everyone else's ties to the Volturi. As we arrived at the house, I almost fell apart again. It was the same house. We were on the outskirts of Forks, and not really near Olympia. They had moved back to my home. From what we had been told, they were no longer interacting with the humans around them, choosing instead to keep to themselves.

In hushed tones that I knew the vampires waiting inside could not hear, I said, "My name is not to be mentioned and I will not lower my cloak. I do not want them to know who I am. Jane and Alec, you need to do all the talking. I will keep you under my shield so Edward will not be able to read your minds. Ness - you know how to effectively block your mind. This is why I have taught this to you. You need to keep Edward out of your head. He cannot know who I am or who you really are to him. Promise me!"

My little one looked at me painfully for a moment and then gravely nodded her head in my direction.

As we came into full view, I heard the familiar sound of a metal wall closing over the glass one and the door silently opened. My heart broke again as I saw my family walk out towards us. At first, their faces were full of anger, but it was slowly replaced with confusion. Apparently, they knew that more of the guard was coming for them. Alice must have told them. Abruptly, I realized that I had not counted on Alice. She would have seen this and would know who I was. I focused on her face and saw a look of excitement evident all over her. She winked at me and then put on a mask of confusion. Edward turned and scowled at her. I assumed that she was blocking her thoughts from him. At this, I reluctantly focused on his face. The pain was evident all over him. I wanted so badly to cross the distance and comfort him, but I knew it would not be welcomed.

Finally, Carlisle spoke up, "What do you want from us? We know you have come to destroy and acquire. I warn you, we will not go without a fight. Renesmee, I am surprised to see you in the company of these killers."

Jane drew in a slow breath and gently said, "Carlisle, we had no knowledge of why we were here until we arrived. We believe this course of action is wrong. We will not fight with the guard against you. If it comes to that, we will take your side. We cannot tell you our reasons but please believe that we want to protect your family from this harm. After the confrontation, we will return to Volterra and make Aro's greed and corruption widely known if they refuse to leave your family alone."

We spoke for over an hour. Edward became more and more frustrated as the time went on. Ness grabbed my hand, communicated her curiosity about his response and I laughed for a moment. His inability to read us was driving him nuts. I carefully bent my head towards my daughter and whispered in her ear, explaining his annoyance. Ness laughed and Edward growled.

Carlisle gave Edward a sharp look and said, "Forgive my son, he feels uncomfortable when he cannot read other's minds."

Jane smiled and said, "Renesmee's mother is a mental shield. We did not want to accidently share with you more than we had planned. After all, we are still a part of the Volturi and have secrets that we cannot share. However, Ness can show you the commitment of our cause, if you like. She is much more practiced at blocking her thoughts from others."

Silently, Ness stepped forward and reached out towards Edward.

He suddenly gasped and quickly said, "They are telling the truth. There is something they do not wish us to know but it has nothing to do with their plan. They are honest. Renesmee, you are a unique and powerful creature. Your talent is amazing."

For a moment, my favorite smile was on his face but almost before I registered it, he replaced it with an expression of pain.

After sharing the whole plan with them, we quietly left. Before I could stop myself, I turned quickly towards them as we reached the tree line and looked back at Edward. The sudden wind I created with my movement spread out like a cloud away from me and the expression on Edward's face went from pain to utter agony.

In a broken voice, I heard him choke out, "Strawberries - and freesia."

Apparently, my scent had not changed enough for him not to be familiar with it. Before he could react, I turned back and ran as fast as I could through the trees. As I ran, I thought through his response. Why would my scent cause him so much pain? He had thrown me aside for someone else. It must be guilt that motivated him. I was glad I had not revealed myself to them.

Just before we hit the other side of the woods, I heard something behind me. I flipped around and looked behind me. After a moment, Alice stepped into view. I sighed and walked towards her slowly.

After a moment, Alice shakily said, "Bella, is that really you?"

I sighed again, lowered my hood, and looked my best friend fully in the face. Suddenly, Alice flew towards me and wrapped her tiny arms around me.

Alice gushed out, "Bella! I can't believe it's you. I saw you in my vision but I still couldn't believe it. I have missed you so much, my friend. I know what is going on. I know who Nessie is even though I can't see her."

Alice hugged me even tighter.

Finally, I said with a laugh, "I should have known I wouldn't be able to keep the truth from you, my irritating pixie of a friend."

Alice backed up, laughed and said, "Of course not. I've been driving Edward nuts for weeks now. He has been trying to read my mind continuously since he realized I was blocking him out. I have had many very confusing visions since I first saw you. Your future is very murky. I have seen two general versions though. You with Alec, arm in arm, or you marrying Edward - finally."

I looked hard into Alice's eyes and said, "Alice, that was a very long time ago. I am part of the Volturi now."

Then I turned my back and ran for the hotel before I broke down again.

As I ran, I heard Alice's chipper pixie-like voice ring out, "Bella, you know better than to bet against me. Your future just became crystal clear. See you soon, sis!"

The moment I crossed the doorway into the hotel, Alec's arms were wrapped around me, holding me close to him. After a few moments he picked me up, not caring about the looks he was getting from the humans that surrounded us, and took me to my room. Once we were back in my room, Alec gently put me on the bed and held me as I sobbed. Seeing them again was almost more than I could handle. The pain that was on Edward's face made me want to die and yet all I could do was stand there and watch him suffer. I kept reminding myself that he was suffering because of someone else and not because he loved me, but I couldn't help but want to comfort him and chase all the pain away.

After a couple of hours, Alec gently said, "Bella, I know it hurts. I know you are in pain but we need to move the plan ahead. It is time to prepare for the confrontation. You need to do this for him, and for your daughter."

I took some deep breaths and slowly calmed myself down. The imaginary hole in my chest was bleeding profusely, but I supposed there was no way to help that with Edward in such close proximity.

I turned to Alec and said, "I don't know how Alice thinks that I will end up with Edward. He loves someone else. Kate told me as much. Why would she think I would put myself in a situation where I was with someone who didn't really love me?" Alec sighed.

"Maybe, my dear, things are different than what they seem like to you. I don't know how someone who knows you could choose anyone else."

I looked at Alec apologetically and said, "Alec, I'm sorry. I don't want to make things any harder on you. I shouldn't be turning to you with this."

Alec started and said, "Bella, it's alright. The pain is my own choosing. We really should go though. Jane will start to throw a fit and you know how my sister can be."

Slowly, I pulled myself together and left the room with Alec to meet up with the rest of guard. I was suddenly glad that I would not have to do much talking or planning in the meeting we were headed to.

For the next few hours, we sat together working on strategy. Jane and Alec laid down various scenarios. Four of us knew that the plans we were making in this room were just decoys for what would really happen, but the rest of the guard was used to following Jane and Alec's lead, so they did not question some of the more unusual directions that were given. For the first time ever, I would take my rightful place as point with Jane and Alec flanking me. The rest of the guard would be strategically placed behind us. I knew this was so the three of us could easily separate ourselves from the guard if needed, but the rest simply saw it as me taking my position as the head of the guard, finally. This threw many more questions my way, but I was able to deflect them easily to the witch twins, which the rest of the guard called them behind their backs. Finally, we were finished and it was time for me to take Ness to a safe place. The guard thought nothing of the fact that only Jane, Alec and I knew where she was going to be. They were aware of Edward's power and we were able to use this to our advantage.

I quickly ran towards the Cullens with Ness in my arms. She begged me to talk to them, however, I knew it would be a mistake. When we arrived, Alice was waiting outside for us. I quickly shielded her and handed Nessie off.

Alice knew she couldn't say a word or the rest would hear, but she hugged me fiercely and said, "I will take care of your daughter. I promise."

I smiled from under my hooded cloak and said, "Thank you for everything, Alice."

I hugged her again, waited for a moment to allow her to get her thoughts under control and then ran for the forest. I had a few hours until the battle, and even though I knew I would regret it, there was something in me that forced me to run for the meadow that was so special to Edward and I. I burst into the clearing and sank into the grass. It was a sunny day and I watched as my hands sparkled in the sunlight. My heart broke yet again sitting in this spot. I tried to distract myself and used my now perfect memory to record the meadow just as it was in my mind. I never wanted to forget this place. Suddenly, I heard a noise behind me. I whipped around and saw Edward standing there with a dumbfounded look on his face. He moved towards me slightly, agony evident on his face.

Finally, he spat out, "What are you doing here? Haven't you disturbed us enough?"

I looked at him incredulously and then ran from the meadow. I knew he had not seen my face, but my scent was enough to tell him who I was. He knew it was me and wanted nothing to do with me. Once I was far enough away from the meadow, I collapsed in tears. He didn't want me, and I was nothing but a nuisance to him.

I cried until I noticed that the light was completely gone from the forest, so I made the one other trip I needed to do while I was here. It was time to say goodbye to Charlie. It had been long enough that the change could be explained but if I waited too much longer, I knew Charlie would suspect something was wrong because I would look too young to be his daughter. This was going to be difficult. I picked myself up off the ground and ran towards Charlie's house.

**Longest post A/N ever ;)  
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	14. Chapter 14 Goodbye Charlie

**A/N: Okay this chapter is short but I don't feel bad after the mammoth chapter you got this weekend ;)**

**Confrontation coming soon! Hope you enjoy :)**

Chapter 14 – Goodbye Charlie

As I approached the house, I saw Charlie standing out front with Billy and Jacob Black. I knew I would have to wait until they were gone. The Blacks would only bring one more complication that I did not need. Jacob and Billy were nice enough, however, I needed as few people as possible knowing that I was back. Moreover, I knew that they hated the Cullens and vampires in general and I did not need that complication. I sniffed the air carefully and smelled the repugnant smell of werewolf in the air. I looked at Jacob with amusement. All the signs were there. The moment my scent hit him, his face contorted with pain and disgust.

So quietly that only a person with enhanced hearing could perceive, he said into the night air, "What is your business here, vampire?"

I carefully disguised my voice and softly said, "Dog - I am here to collect evidence for the Volturi. I will not harm this man or any other human in this area. You have nothing to fear from me."

He looked into the woods towards my voice, after a moment relaxed his posture, and returned to the conversation. Jacob quickly pushed the conversation to an end and rushed his father away from the house. Apparently, Jacob knew of the impending fight and understood why the Volturi would be collecting evidence. He just did not realize that I was not there to observe him, but to say goodbye to my father. Once they were completely out of sight, I took a deep breath and walked out of the forest towards my father.

As I approached, Charlie froze to the step where he was standing. Everything in his body tensed. The police chief in him was reacting to sight of such an oddly dressed individual wandering out of the woods but not appearing to be lost. Once I was close enough, I slowly brought my hands up to my hood and gently lowered it. Charlie gasped in and held his breath. He began to get red from the lack of airflow.

Quickly I said, "Charlie, breathe!"

He let out the held breath and slowly took a few more before he shakily said, "Bella?"

The shock was evident on his face. After giving him a chance to get a few more breaths in, I walked towards him and carefully wrapped my arms around him. He flinched at my cold temperature, but hugged me back with what I imagined to be all the force he had.

As I held my father, I whispered, "I love you, Dad. I'm so sorry."

For a long time, Charlie held me in his arms, alternating between hugging me tightly, kissing my forehead, and looking at me with disbelief. After a moment, tears silently streamed down his face. Finally, he held me at arms length and said, "Bella, we thought… we thought we'd lost you, honey. I feel like I am dreaming again. I used to dream that you would come back and walk through the door even though I knew the chances of you being all right were almost non-existent. Eventually, though we… we had to let go and try to move on. Renee - I should call your mother."

I grabbed Charlie's arm with just enough force that he could not get loose, but not to the point where I was hurting him. Then, I said quickly, "Dad, you can't call her or tell her I'm here. She would never be able to handle it. I shouldn't even be here. I just couldn't let you think that I was dead. But Dad, you can't call Mom, she can't know."

Once he recovered from the shock, he looked at me expectantly and said, "Why, Bells? I thought you were dead. I thought I would never see you again."

I looked at Charlie and said, "Dad, I live in a very different world from the one you know. One I cannot tell you about. What you need to know is that I am safe, happy, and healthy. Beyond that, there is not much else I can say. Someday, if I can, I will explain. As to why I left, I can tell you part of that story. I left to protect myself and someone else that I care for deeply. Beyond that again, I cannot explain."

Charlie looked at me with a hard, calculating expression. He knew I was not telling him the truth but he also wasn't sure he wanted the whole story.

Finally, curiosity got the best of me and I asked him, "Dad, how much do you know about Jacob Black?"

Charlie grimaced and paled at Jacob's mention.

Finally, with a very meaningful expression, he said, "I know what they are and that they would do anything to protect their people."

I looked at him shrewdly and said, "You know WHAT they are?"

Charlie looked back at me in shock, and said, "They really couldn't hide it from me anymore when I tried to arrest one of them for a crime they didn't commit. Jacob has been their liaison since the day he phased in front of me."

He shrugged apologetically and I laughed. My father had been introduced to the world of the supernatural.

I breathed, smiled back at my father warmly, and said, "Dad, I can't tell you the whole truth but I can tell you that my world is a lot more like Jacob's than yours."

Charlie looked at me and choked out, "You don't turn into an animal, do you?"

I laughed and said, "No, Dad, I'm another class all together."

Something clicked in my father's head.

He gasped and spat out, "Cold one!"

I solemnly nodded and said, "Dad, I love you, but now you understand. I cannot be a part of your life. Just knowing what I am is risking your life. Being involved in my life would mean your death. I came here to say goodbye to you, so you wouldn't wonder anymore. I wanted to give you as much closure as I could. I know it is not enough but it is all I can do. I love you, Dad."

With that, I threw my arms around my father and hugged him gently before I turned and ran at my full speed out the door.

I barely had time to get my cloak on before I had three werewolves standing in front of me. The middle one looked at me warily and phased. I couldn't help but laugh. Jacob Black was standing in front of me in human form without a stitch of clothing on. I suppose others would find his chiseled physique alluring, but the only feeling I had was one of amusement and awkwardness.

Jacob growled at me and I said, "Do not worry about Chief Swan. I did not harm him. You may go speak to him if you like, Jacob, but you will need to block your mind from Edward if you do that. I would prefer that you not speak to him at all until I leave the area."

Jacob looked at me in complete shock. He was confused as to how I knew his name and why I had such an intimate knowledge of how he would need to stop Edward. His confusion made his lack of clothing even more comical. It was all I could do to not laugh. The only thing that kept me in check was the teeth that I knew came with his shape shifter abilities. I rather liked being in one piece and I was reasonably certain that antagonizing a werewolf was a bad idea.

Suddenly, Charlie stepped out of the darkness behind me. I had been so wrapped up in my conversation that I had not heard him approach us.

Charlie addressed the wolves and said, "Jake, don't worry about it. This vampire was here to find out about Bella. She will not harm us. Let her go back."

I turned my back on the wolves and looked at Charlie. He was holding back tears as he looked into my face. My jovial mood disappeared at the sight of my father almost in tears again.

I mouthed, "I love you," at him and then ran towards the hotel.

Returning to Forks was a bad idea. The memories were coming hard and fast and I could not handle them all. My heart was breaking into pieces all over again. I thought that nothing could hurt worse than losing Edward, but saying goodbye to all of my ties to my human life was tearing me apart. I began to realize that I had been living for my daughter. Renesmee had kept me from falling apart completely. However, now my daughter was a grown woman and she would be leaving me soon, I was going to have to really deal with everything I left behind here, finally. This was just the tip of the iceberg. I was going to have to deal with all the pain I had been holding back from losing Edward and the rest of my human life. I did not blame my daughter for my lost life, but for once, I wished that things had been different for me. I knew from what Jane told me that as an immortal there was no end, just countless years where I would have nothing to distract myself from the pain of losing the love of my life.

As the sky began to lighten, I started to force myself back into composure. Soon enough I was going to be able to let myself be overcome with the grief I was feeling, but today I was going to have to keep myself together for my daughter and my family. I would not allow my feelings to get in the way of protecting the ones I loved. Suddenly, I heard a knock on my door and Alec walked into the room. I stood up straight and became a guard of Volturi for one last time. This time not serving out justice to the outside world, but protecting Volterra from the threat from within the castle walls. I walked out the door at Alec's side, and we left the hotel to face our fates.

**And the evil cliffie fairy strikes again ;) **

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	15. Chapter 15 Changing Sides

Chapter 15 - Changing Sides

We moved swiftly through the woods in formation, only breaking ranks when a tree got in our way. As we approached the Cullens' home, I tried not to focus on the fear and dread I was feeling. What if this did not work the way we had planned it? Would we be forced to fight against the guard? What if all of our efforts failed? Was I ready to lose my life for the Cullens? I knew the answer to that one without a doubt. Even though I had spent the last ten years with the Volturi and had only been with the Cullens for a matter of months, I knew which ones I truly loved. Even if Edward were not a factor, I would have chosen the Cullens over the vampire royalty. As we approached the house, I saw the door silently open and the members of the Cullen family move out to take their places. Each of them had a set look of determination on their faces, except for Edward. His face was completely dead. He looked like a living machine, doing what he needed to do to protect his family. I had never seen such an expression on his face in the months that I had known him. Whatever the girl had done to him had left Edward a shell of what he once was. We paused right inside the tree line and solidified our formation before stepping out into the clearing around the house.

Once the guard stopped, they all dropped their hoods and looked at the Cullens, matching them up to the photos and descriptions we had been given. With a twitch of my hand, the members of the guard realigned themselves in front of the family member they were assigned to. The Cullens knew what was coming but they still gave off a look of surprise at the apparent lack of command. They had not seen my slight movement and were shocked by how we moved as a unit. We all stared, sizing each other up. The only one who seemed completely complacent about the whole thing was Alice. Her facial expression mimicked the ones of her family, however I knew it was a ruse the second she winked at me. I fought back a giggle and thought to myself _stupid little devil future-seeing pixie_. Before anything started, I threw up my shield to surround the Cullens and the twins. I had learned a long time ago how to split my shield into separate sections. Edward could not hear Jane or Alec's thoughts even though I was still protecting them. It was like two twin soap bubbles, connected but separate. I nodded almost imperceptibly to Jane and Alec to let them know that my shield was up and we were ready to start the proceedings.

Jane spoke up first with, "Carlisle, you and your family have been accused of crimes against the vampire world. We are here to read these charges and to dole out your sentence. You will be given a chance to defend yourself once the accusations have been read."

Carlisle nodded at Jane gravely. He knew we had to go through the steps of holding a council. We had instructed him about how to follow all the procedures so that none of the guard would find excuse to attack prematurely. Alec pulled out an ancient looking scroll and began to read off the accusations against the Cullen family. As he read, suddenly a wet dog smell assaulted my nose and I saw a pack of Quileute wolves descend on us. Alec continued to read, not fazed by the fact that the wolves had joined us. The rest of the guard however acted defensively. They had never seen children of the moon act this way. I again had to stifle a giggle as I saw their expressions from underneath my hood. They were thoroughly confused by the pack organization of these wolves and why they would refrain from attacking the vampires around them. This was the opening we were going to need if we were going to stop Aro's horrid plan for my family.

Once Alec finished, Jane piped up with, "Carlisle, do you have any response to the accusations?"

After a split second pause, Carlisle nodded curtly at Jane, and began speaking, "My family and I are not guilty of the accusations brought against us. These are not children of the moon. For one thing, it is daylight. Children of the moon are stuck to nights with a full moon. Another thing is that until true werewolves, these creatures can control themselves and their transformations. Jacob?"

Carlisle paused for a moment as a russet colored wolf separated himself from the pack and phased right in front of us. In place of the wolf stood Jacob Black with a bush carefully hiding his lack of clothing. After a moment, Jacob sniffed, shifted back and walked to rejoin his pack. Carlisle was about to continue but Jane held up her hand to silence him. Now it was my turn to act.

I took in a deep breath and stepped towards the Cullen family. When I was only a few feet in front of Carlisle, I turned my back on him and faced the guard.

I carefully disguised my voice and said, "Now, you have seen that the accusations against this family are false. However, I can tell you that these accusations were only an excuse. If we were to contact the council now, they would find another reason for this attack. I intercepted a letter from Aro to Jane. He wants three of this clan for their unique abilities. The council now sees it fit to attack other covens and just take what they want for themselves. I will stand by silent no longer while they destroy other's lives. Most of you know the condition of my placement on the guard. This is to be my last mission. According to the council, I am to be released of my service; however, that is also not their intent. They intend to take my daughter from me and force me into continued service. I will not stand by and idly take this. My daughter will remain here, out of their grasp, and I will return to face their corruption of power. You have a choice to make. Do you fight with me against the council, or do you take the lives of innocents and give the Volturi free reign to take whatever they want, no matter the cost?"

I stared at their bewildered faces for a moment, all frozen in position. I knew they could not see my face, but understood my sincerity and conviction. Felix wordlessly pulled his phone from his pocket. He dialed a number and held the phone up.

Then he said into it, "Aro things are very different here than you assumed. The Quileutes are not traditional werewolves. They are merely shape shifters who maintain human-like control while shifted."

Felix then put the phone on speaker and the whole guard heard Aro's tinny voice through the device say, "Take them out anyway. The Cullens are too powerful to be allowed. I don't care if they are real wolves or not. I want Alice, Jasper and Edward for the guard. Do it. Now!" The faces around me were in various states of shock and disbelief. Apparently, this was a new level for Aro in all their eyes.

Felix calmly responded, "As you wish. Your orders regarding the girl still stand?"

Aro tersely responded, "Of course. If this is a problem I can send Chelsea to assist you."

Very formally, Felix said, "Her presence will not be necessary Aro. We will take care of it."

Felix hung up the phone and said, "I don't know about the rest of you, but I have never been away from Chelsea as much as I have been lately. I am finding her influence is greatly diminished. I find that I do not hold the council in the same regard as I had previously. I believe they are wrong." Then slowly Felix and Demetri walked to my side. At their movement, the rest of the guard came over in sets of ones and twos. As we had planned, Jane and Alec stood until the last on the other side. If the others had not gone with us, we needed them as secret weapons, ready to betray the council when they were unaware. Finally, when the whole guard was looking at them they smiled and walked towards me, throwing their arms around me. The impact of their twin hugs knocked me back slightly and my hood fell backwards. I gasped and quickly recovered my hood, but I heard a vampire behind me shaking in silent sobs.

I turned slowly and saw Edward on the ground, contorted in pain. His body was shuddering and shaking as he cried. His sisters moved to him quickly and wrapped their arms around him.

Alice looked at me and mouthed, "Do you see what has become of him? He still loves you. Just seeing someone with your hair made him collapse in pain."

Edward continued to sob on the ground, writhing in emotional pain and agony, oblivious for once, to Alice's words. I backed up into the midst of the guard and stared at him with disbelief. There was no way he was crying like this for me. I could not and would not believe it. Suddenly one small sentence came back to me from my human memories of the DVD he had sent me. He had said that he did not want me. Then, the moments from the meadow this week where I was certain he knew exactly who I was replayed in my mind. These tears were not for me, as much as Alice wanted me to believe that they were. I started to move away with the rest of the guard when Edward leapt off the ground, throwing his sisters away and ran towards me. Jane and Alec were instantly in front of him, shielding me from him.

Finally, he choked out, "What is your name?"

I shook as I stood there, part of me wanting to tell him the truth and the other part of me wanting to run away as quickly as I could.

Finally, I whispered out, "Marie."

With that, I turned my back and walked until I hit the tree line. Once I knew I was out of sight, I ran until the grief pulled me back under and I sobbed. The only thing that fazed me was when I felt Alec's arms circle me and pull me to him as I let the pain take me over.

After some time I felt the whole guard surround me. They waited patiently as I willed myself back into composure.

I looked at them all, and with every ounce of sincerity I had, I said, "Thank you, to you all. We now have a much harder task ahead of us. We have to face the council."

They all nodded at me grimly with a newfound determination as we headed back to the hotel to formulate a plan to face our masters one last time.


	16. Chapter 16 Vampire Royal

**A/N: No B/E reunion yet but it's coming… trust me… it's worth the wait ;)**

**I have to say a huge thank you to Sara (get an account already girl!), Tlcatlady and IvoryAdulation- When I posted the last chapter I was having a rough time, feeling like my writing sucked. You ladies were a huge encouragement. Thanks so much! I even went back and changed my author's note for the last chapter because of you guys ;) Thanks for the confidence boost!**

**Short but action packed chapter ahead!**

Chapter 16 - Vampire Royal

As I passed time on the plane back to Italy, my mind played back the previous two days repeatedly in my head. No matter what I did, I could not distract myself from them. The Cullens had offered to come help us face the council, but I refused to allow them to do so. They had a much more important task now; they needed to safeguard my daughter. I did not mention that there was no way I could put them in such a dangerous position. Carlisle begged and pleaded to allow his family to assist us but we all adamantly refused their help. Ness came to the hotel and we spent time together saying our goodbyes, neither one of us knowing when exactly the next time we would see each other would be. Saying goodbye to my daughter was very difficult, but I comforted myself in the fact that she would be safe with her family and they would take excellent care of her. I made her renew her promise to me to not allow Edward to know the truth about her, and to keep her mind blocked from his. She reluctantly agreed, and insisted that he would not come near her anyway. I was grimly satisfied with this. Ness would be able to keep my secret, and be allowed a chance to learn something about her father.

Against my better judgment, before I left, I paid one more visit to Charlie. I had missed him more than I realized. I decided to risk Aro's wrath at the chance to spend a little more time with my father. We spent hours catching up with each other, and this time I promised to keep in contact with him if I could. I also forced him to promise to stay away from the Cullens, even though I knew I had no reason to worry. The Cullens were going to head to Alaska as soon as the guard was gone, but I didn't want Edward to find out about me from Charlie either.

The rest of the time I had before we left was spent on how we were going to confront the council and keep ourselves from being manipulated by Chelsea. The moment we arrived in the city, it was going to be my job to take Chelsea out. I was the only one she could not affect. I hated the idea of taking her life, but I knew it was necessary or we would never be able to stop the council.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, we landed in Volterra and sped back to the castle. I was nervous as we rode back into the city, and Alec grabbed my hand wordlessly in an attempt to comfort me. Jane grimaced when he did this and after a moment, I pulled my hand away. I had spent too much time in his arms, allowing him to comfort me, while we were in Forks. Jane's grimace reminded me that this would be affecting him and giving him hope that I cared for him too. I never wanted to hurt him more than I already had and so I knew I had to put some distance between Alec and I. Jane nodded at me and her face softened as she saw my response to her unspoken concern. She knew I cared for her brother as a friend and would not want to cause him any more pain. Alec looked at me with a perplexed expression for a moment and I shook my head at him slowly. Pain was etched on his face as he sat back in his seat, before replacing the pain with an expressionless mask.

Once we reached the castle, the guard assembled and as a unit, we marched inside. Someone notified us that Aro wished to see us immediately. We nodded at them and continued to the main room where we knew Chelsea would be with the skeleton crew that had remained behind to guard the council. I stood in the back, inconspicuous in the crowd. We all wore our hoods and marched into the council chamber. The second we entered the room, the doors slammed shut behind us and two furious faces, along with one bored one, of the council greeted us. Silently, the guard stood inches from the council and I moved over to Chelsea. Aro began screaming at Jane and Alec who stood there, frozen like stone. I had thrown my shield over the whole group so I could be sure that Chelsea, who was already trying to use her power against us, was not affecting anyone. I slid up behind Chelsea and before she could make a sound, my teeth severed her head from the rest of her body. The whole council turned at the sound of teeth ripping her granite-like skin, and watched motionless as I tore Chelsea to shreds. Once I completed my work, I took out my lighter and began burning her body. At this sight, the council moved again towards Jane, Alec, and rest of the group. Before they could do anything, Alec had deprived them of all their senses and they were at our mercy.

Slowly, Alec released his hold on the minds of the three council members, allowing them to understand and react with us. The rest of the guard stood there frozen under Alec's complete control. Finally, Jane, Alec, and I stepped up to the three members of the council.

Aro spit out, "What is the meaning of this treachery?"

The three council members looked back and forth trying to figure out what we were thinking.

Alec and Jane turned towards me, and I took a deep breath as I addressed the council saying, "Aro, Marcus, Caius, you have overstepped your bounds too far this time. We will not allow you to rip families apart to strengthen your own numbers. We will also no longer allow you to force people into servitude to the Volturi. You have become corrupted by your power and we will no longer allow this to continue. I knew about your plot to kidnap Ness and use her against me. I was appalled by this, but I decided to get her out of harm's way and hope it was an isolated incident. However, your actions in Washington proved to me otherwise. Of course, you had no idea that I would not allow you to harm the Cullens anyway, even if they had been in the wrong. You see, Edward Cullen is Renesmee's father. There was no way I could take his life. When I found out the reasons behind your actions, I decided that it was time to act. Fortunately, for me, the rest of the guard agreed with me. What you're doing is wrong and we will not allow it. What do you have to say for yourselves?"

Aro stared at me with fury and rage evident in his eyes as he said haughtily, "Edward Cullen? Well that is a bit of a surprise. I should have seen it with your reaction to Carlisle's name when you first arrived. I had thought that Eleazar's wandering eyes had gotten himself in trouble again, and perhaps you had run here to escape Carmen's wrath at his infidelity."

Caius also looked back at us with a furious but superior expression. Marcus, however, surprised me. He looked sideways at his brothers with shock and horror.

When Aro noticed Marcus' reaction, he growled at him and said, "I should have known that you would fall in with these pathetically emotional creatures. I should have killed you when I took out Didyme."

Marcus gasped and froze.

Caius looked at Aro with disgust and said, "You killed your own sister to keep him here? I would never have done such a thing. Your own sister, Aro."

Then Caius addressed us, "While I do not agree with your actions, Aro has become a liability to the Volturi. He will no longer serve on the council."

Jane and I moved towards Aro to destroy him, but Marcus growled out, "NO! He is mine!"

With that, Marcus, showing more emotion than I had ever seen on his face, tore Aro to shreds and burned his body.

Once Aro's body was producing a sickly sweet column of smoke, I turned to address Caius.

"Caius, you are only bothered by the fact that Aro killed his sister. However, I see no regret about my daughter or the Cullen family. Am I right in interpreting your actions in this manner?" I said stiffly.

I would not pass judgment without considering all the facts, as the council had been so prone to do.

Caius paused and then gravely said, "While I think Aro was wrong in taking his sister's life, I do not think that it was wrong for the council to use whatever actions necessary to protect itself. You were too valuable to lose and the Cullens would have been a great asset to the guard. I believe that we should take whatever we need for the greater good of the vampire world."

I looked at him in disgust. He actually believed the drivel that was spewing from his mouth.

Before I could speak, Marcus turned and addressed Caius, "Brother, while I appreciate your distaste at the loss of my wife, I would never have willingly agreed to the direction the council has taken. The two of you used Chelsea to control me. You and Aro have corrupted the point of this office. You have been blinded by power and I will not continue to serve alongside you."

I looked at Marcus and said, "That will not be a problem. Caius will no longer be allowed to serve on the council. We will destroy him."

With that, I motioned to Jane and Alec, who gravely nodded in unison and began tearing Caius to pieces.

As they worked, I turned to Marcus and said, "Marcus, I would like you to remain on the council. You have shown me that you still have the right purpose and heart for this job. Would you consider it?"

Marcus looked at me warily for a moment and then slowly said, "Bella, I will not rule alone. After what became of my brothers, I will not allow myself that temptation. However, if you are to appoint two others, then I will remain. There is much I have to atone for while I was under the control of Aro and Caius."

I considered his request for a moment, then I gave him a hard smile and said, "I have two others in mind to become part of the council with you."

Marcus smiled and said, "I think I know exactly who you mean. The whole vampire world will fear them, but they would be fair and have good hearts."

I smiled back at him and then turned to Jane and Alec, "Jane, Alec would you take the other two seats on the council?"

They both looked back at me in shock and awe.

Alec finally spoke up and said, "Bella, what about you? You would be just as good a placement as either of us, maybe even better."

I shook my head with a sad expression on my face.

Then, I brokenly said, "I am in no condition to lead. There are too many demons that I need to face in my own life. I cannot keep pushing this aside. Alec you saw me fall apart in Forks. I need to deal with my pain. I had been ignoring it for Ness, because she was more important than me, but now I need to deal with my pain and grief."

Jane then said, "Bella, I believe you are right. If you don't deal with your pain, you will become twisted inside, as I was with Chelsea's assistance. I never gave myself a chance to grieve the loss of Eleazar, and I became someone who enjoyed hurting others. It became a way to inflict the pain I was feeling on someone else. While Chelsea played on my rage, turning me into an even darker version of myself, the heart of it was still my fault. I also need to make up for past sins and I will use this position to do so."

I hugged Jane, Alec and Marcus in turn. Then, I said, "I have complete confidence in you. You will be able to right many of the wrongs that have occurred at this council's hands. I will miss you all, but I must leave. I need time. Thank you for everything."

Alec looked at me with complete agony and Jane nodded at my sympathetically. Then, all three of them hugged me again and I walked out of the castle for the last time. I dropped my cloak at the door, leaving the Volturi guard behind for good, and allowing the pain to take me over.

**Curious if anyone saw what Aro was thinking about the identity of Nessie's father?**

**What do you want to see from who's perspective? Let me know!**

**I have a new poll up on my profile… go check it out :)**

**Okay you know the drill… hit that review button please! Reviews make me want to update and work on this story from other POV and get that out and done faster :)**


	17. Chapter 17 Pain and Happiness

**A/N: Okay everyone…. I know we've had a lot of no Edward and Bella… but bear with them for a little bit longer… we are so close I can taste it :)**

Chapter 17 - Pain and Happiness

It had been months since I left Italy. I wandered aimlessly around the world, but nothing caught my attention. I had been a fool when I thought that I needed to deal with the pain. Now all I wanted was a way to escape it. For days at a time, I would go into a zombie-like state. Nothing could distract me from what I was feeling. Crying and breaking down did no good. The raw ache that completely overwhelmed me was always there. So many times, I would end up at the airport and would sit there for hours. I bought countless plane tickets back to Washington or Alaska from various locations, but I was never able to get on a plane and face him. I knew that facing Edward would make the pain even worse than it was now. I could not get the images of him out of my head. His dead and lifeless expression haunted me. I would fall into my meditative states and that was even worse. He was always there, looking at me with that horrid expression, or telling me repeatedly that he didn't want me.

The only thing that would stop the pain for a few precious moments were calls from Ness. She would call once a week, telling me that she missed and loved me. After the first couple of calls, I could tell that something had changed in my daughter. There was a certain joy in her that was painfully familiar. I had felt the same joy in the months I was with Edward. My little one had fallen in love and she was happy. Part of me was thrilled for her, but the other part of me was painfully reminded of just how much Edward had ripped away from me. Finally, I asked her about it. I could hear the shyness in her voice when she said that she had met someone. I asked her who he was but she had just blown it off. Whoever the boy was, I could tell she was concerned that it would bother me.

Alice called me a few times as well, but after the first couple of calls, I ignored her completely. Alice spent her time begging me to come back and talk to Edward. She said that it would fix so much. That he and I needed to talk. She might have been right, but I knew I was not ready to face him yet. I didn't know if I would ever be ready to talk to him. He had ripped my heart into pieces and yet, as much as I hurt, I still loved him completely. I would not be able to see him grieve over someone else.

About six months after I left Volterra, Ness called me and said, "Mom, I need you to come to Washington. I- I'm getting married."

I almost dropped the phone.

I asked her, yet again, who this boy of hers was and she whispered into the phone, "Jacob Black."

I hung up the phone in shock. My daughter was going to marry a werewolf. I didn't know how to handle this. Two days later Ness called me back and explained the imprinting compulsion to me. She explained that he had imprinted on her because he was her perfect mate. Then, I heard Jacob walk into the room and sigh into the phone contentedly as I talked to my daughter and decided it was high time I spoke to my future son-in-law.

"Ness, I would like to talk to Jacob," I spat out into the phone, clearly agitated.

The next thing I heard was a familiar voice on the other end, "Marie? This is Jacob Black, your daughter's fiancé. I'm glad to finally get a chance to talk to you."

I paused for a moment and abruptly said, "This is not the first time you have talked to me Jacob. I can hear that Ness is happy with you and she loves you. Due to that fact, I will leave you in one piece, but if you hurt her, you will have a score of angry vampires ready and willing to do something about it."

Jacob let out one hard laugh and then said, "I promise that I will take care of her. She is everything; she is my life now."

I cringed at those words. Edward had told me that, too, and yet I was here alone without him. Even after telling me that I was his whole life now, he still ended up saying he didn't want me and left me alone.

With that, Ness was back on the phone again anxiously saying, "Mom, the wedding is in four months. I will understand if you don't come, but mom I really want you to be there."

I heard her crying on the other end of the line, and I brokenly stuttered out, "Honey, you know I want to be there for you, I – I just don't know if I can."

With a dejected tone, I heard Ness say, "Mom, it's ok, really I understand."

I heard a shuffle, and Alice yelled, "Don't you dare, you'll just make things worse. Don't mess with things you don't understand!"

Before I could ask what Alice was talking about, I heard the most beautiful voice in the world on the other end of the line, "I don't know who you are or why you think it would ever be okay to miss this, but how could you hurt your own daughter by not showing up at her wedding? What kind of a heartless wench are you?"

I tried to stay composed but I started sobbing into the phone. I heard someone deliver a resounding smack and before I could hear anything else, I hung up the phone and turned it off.

Suddenly, I was furious. How in the world could he dare to call me a heartless wench? He was the one who had left me and turned me into the sorry mess that I was. Of course, I reminded myself, he had no idea who he was really addressing. With that thought, I began to consider going to my daughter's wedding. However, I knew that it would be completely impossible. I had no reason now to stay hidden from view. If I went to my daughter's wedding, Edward would actually find out who I was and the truth would be out. But, I knew that there was no way I could handle him rejecting me again. I would never resurface if he hurt me like that again. I was going to have to call Ness and tell her that there was no way I was going to be able to make an appearance at that wedding, as much as it hurt me.

Two days later Renesmee called me again.

Softly I heard her voice over the phone, "Mom, no one else is around right now. I am so sorry that I put you through that. I never thought he would be so stupid. He has no idea who you are, Mom. He never would have said that if he had. As it was, Esme almost killed him for treating any woman that way. Mom, I know you can't come to this wedding but Jake wouldn't stop bugging me until I tried. Mom, please say something."

I took a deep breath and said, "Honey, it's not your fault. Please don't worry about me. You are right, though. I want to be there for you so badly, but you know there is no possible way for me to be there without telling him the truth, and that is not something I can do. Maybe someday, a long time from now, I will finally be able to confront your father, but it will not be anytime soon."

I heard a pause at the other end of the line and Ness then said, "Mom, I don't know if this will be a comfort to you or not, but even though he doesn't know the truth, my father will be the one walking me down the aisle. I am going to ask him if he will do this for me tonight. I wanted to make sure you were okay with it first though. We have a unique and special relationship. Even though he doesn't know the truth, I think he senses some kind of deep connection with me."

I took in a few breaths so that my voice would come out evenly and said, "Ness, I am happy that at least in some way your father can be a part of your life. Honey, I love you. I'll talk to you soon. Bye, baby."

Quickly I heard, "Mom, wait. The guy you talked to the other day just walked up and he wants to say something to you. Would that be all right? I promise that no more name calling will be involved."

I hesitated, even though I knew I could not resist the chance to hear his voice. I told her, "Ok Ness."

I heard the phone changing hands and a very familiar sound of someone breathing on the other end of the line.

After a couple of slow even breaths, his velvet voice brokenly said, "I am so sorry. I had no right to say such things to you. I have no idea who you are and what you have been through. I care about your daughter very much. We all do. I reacted in the heat of the moment and shouldn't have. I am sure there is a good reason you cannot handle this wedding. I am sorrier than I can say that I would cause you any additional pain. Please, please forgive me?"

I wept silently as I heard him apologize to me. I knew he had no idea who was on the other end of the line but it was still soothing to hear him act as if he cared.

Finally, I choked out, "I forgive you, Edward."

Then I realized too late that he had never mentioned his name in either call and I should not know who he was by his voice alone. I heard him gasp in air. I quickly hung up and turned off my phone before he could try to figure out how I knew who he was.

After getting off the phone, I realized that when I had told him that I forgave him, I meant for far more than his angry outburst. I was forgiving him for all of it: all the pain and his rejection of me. I was truly forgiving Edward and my heart broke again as my hate for what he had done vanished away, and the only feeling left was the anguish for the love I had lost.

**And because I am amazing I'm going to give a tiny preview for the next chapter :) This means I expect lots of reviews for this one… **

**Preview:**

_I composed myself and said, "Hello Edward."_

_Shakily, he replied, "Hello love."_

**And that is all you get until this weekend :) Review and I might post sooner rather than later :)**


	18. Chapter 18 Edward

**A/N: Alright… here it is :) Edward and Bella face to face at last :) Read more at the end of chapter…**

Chapter 18 - Edward

A month passed, but I was unaware of it. After I hung up the phone and turned it off that day, I was pulled back under into my zombie-like state. I came out of it when I realized I was so thirsty I was going to lose control if I didn't feed soon, and slip up for the first time and hurt one of the humans around me. As it was, it took every ounce of my control and strength to make it out of the city, and I had to drain half a dozen predators before my thirst was satiated enough to quiet the burning.

When I made it back to my room at the hotel, I dealt with the very angry manager and paid him for the two weeks I was behind and then took care of the next two months. He seemed somewhat placated by the advanced pay and sent up someone to clean the room I was living in. The cleaning staff just annoyed me. I had to take the time to make the room look lived in, even though I had spent the whole time on the couch. Even with my efforts, the staff looked at me oddly, and was very uncomfortable being in the same room with me.

With sudden guilt, I realized that my phone had been off for a whole month. I listened to the messages and heard Ness get more and more frantic with each one. Finally, the last one made me extremely anxious.

Nessie's voice rang out from the speaker in an unusual cheer, "Mom, I am coming to France. I had A-Alice locate you. I will be there in three days. I want to see my mom before my wedding."

With that, she sharply hung up the phone and I heard the date. I then really started to panic. That meant that Ness was showing up at my hotel today. I hurriedly threw myself into the shower and got cleaned up. As much of a mess as I was, there was no way I was going to let Ness find cause to worry about me even more. There was nothing I could do however, about the expression on my face, the pain and grief would be etched there, plain for her to see, but at least I would look decent otherwise.

Just as I threw on a dark blue sundress, I heard a knock at the door. I literally ran to the other side of the room. My little one was on the other side of the door. I really was missing her terribly. I undid the locks, threw the door open, and froze in shock. Ness wasn't the one on the other side of the door. Edward was standing there looking at me as if a ghost was staring back at him. I had no cloak on and when I heard him gasp, I knew the truth was out and I was going to have to face him after all these years.

We stood there, staring at each other for the longest time. We were both frozen vampire statues. I was drinking him in, memorizing every line of his face, every bronze hair on his head and all the flecks of gold in his topaz eyes. He stared at me too, like someone seeing the sun for the first time. I could hardly handle it. Here he was looking at me as if he still loved me even though I knew that he couldn't. I saw his left hand twitch slightly. Suddenly, his arms were around me and he was crushing his lips into mine.

In that moment, all my defenses shattered. I didn't care that he didn't want me anymore, I didn't care that he said he didn't love me. I didn't care that he would leave; all I wanted was to kiss him like this forever. Every once in a while he would break the kiss and would moan my name before pressing his lips into mine again. The look in his eyes was frantic. It made me want to hope that somehow, it was all a misunderstanding and he loved me after all. I knew that allowing that kind of hope in would kill me when he left, and it gave me the courage to push myself out of his arms and run across the room.

He stared at me in shock and I replayed the DVD that he had given me a lifetime ago in my head, reminding myself that he didn't love me or want me.

With that, I composed myself and said, "Hello, Edward."

Shakily, he replied, "Hello love."

He paused, smiling at me, and then continued at a frantic pace, "I thought I had lost you for good. To see you standing here, I hardly know what to do. Bella, come home, love. Please. I lied to you on that DVD but never before that, love. I left to keep you safe. At every turn, it seemed like you being around me was only causing you pain. I couldn't continue to hurt you. I made the DVD and we left, but only because I wanted to give you the chance at a normal life. You could never have had that with me. I wanted to give you a life free of the supernatural and I couldn't even do that completely. I left everything I had taken under a loose floorboard in your bedroom in Forks. I couldn't bear to not leave something with you. Victoria came after you. I chased her to keep you alive. Then Alice had a vision of the fact that you had gone missing. We followed leads until Kate accidentally let her conversation with you in airport slip. Something inside me died that day. I thought that you never loved me. That you left out of guilt. I knew where you had gone and tried to get to you. Then they mistakenly identified a dead pregnant girl as you. I wanted to end my life but something held me back. When the truth slipped out of Nessie's mind, I couldn't believe it. I begged her until she told me everything. I had her set this up, so I could finally set things straight, hoping somehow that you still loved me. Bella, I'm so sorry, love. Please, give me another chance, sweetheart."

As he spoke, I kept chanting to myself that I could handle this. I could act like an adult and keep myself under control. I would not allow him to see how much he had hurt me. He couldn't know that I still loved him. I knew that he was here out of guilt. He had never loved me and I would not allow him to live a lie again. I loved him more than that. Edward kept on saying how much he loved me and that he had left for my own good. He left so that I would have a chance at a normal life. When he heard the truth slip from Nessie's mind, he had begged her until she gave him the whole truth. I couldn't really blame her for that. Here was her father, begging her to tell him everything and I knew from personal experience that Edward Cullen was a hard man to resist. I knew that he couldn't be telling me the truth. If he were, I would know it. Something inside me would click. I knew that he had loved someone else far more than he had ever loved me. Someone else had put that tortured look on his face. The woman that he had loved more than me, that had left him behind.

Eventually, he stopped talking and looked at me with a deep searching glare. He was trying once again to read me. This time I would let him. I smiled slightly, got up, and went towards the door. I knew that once I told him what I wanted him to hear, I would have to get out. He would try to convince me that he was telling the truth and I knew that if I listened too long, I would believe him. I wanted to believe him, but I knew better. I unlocked the door and opened it slightly. I heard a moan of pain escape his lips. My mind struggled with this. He is moaning in pain because I'm walking away. Is it possible that he really does love me? No, it's not possible. I would not believe him. I knew better than to believe him. He lied to me for so long and so well, I knew that I couldn't believe him. He needed to know the pain he had caused so that no one would ever have to go through what I went through again. I turned back to face him and fixed a peaceful expression on my face. Then, I lifted the shield from my mind. Silently, I called his name in my head. Suddenly, his face contorted and he gasped out my name. I knew I had his attention and I gave him a slight smile.

Then I did the hardest thing I had ever done, and thought at him with all my might, "Edward, I have loved you from the day I met you, but I know that you will never feel the same way. I can't believe that you love me. I saw the pain that other girl put on your face. I know that you loved her and were with her after me. If you care for me at all, you will leave me be and never come near me again. Tell Ness I love her and I do not blame her. It was foolish of me to think she could live with you and you would not find out the truth. I think I wanted to finally be able to confront you and give you a chance to know your daughter. Edward, I love you. Please stop feeling guilty and be happy. Goodbye, love."

Edward was frozen with a look of horror on his face. I knew that he had no idea that I knew about the girl he had fallen for after me. I used his shock as my opportunity to escape. I ran out the door at vampire speed and away from him.

Behind me, in the distance, I heard his voice scream, "Bella NO!"

Every part of me wanted to turn back and go to him, but then I let the DVD replay in my head and heard him say that he didn't want me again. I ran for the trees, and away from the love of my existence.

I don't know how much later I came back to my senses. I was curled up on the forest floor somewhere far from the hotel in Paris that I had been staying in. I had run so blindly away from him that I couldn't recall how I had gotten here. Something about these woods was familiar but the sunlight around me was extremely bright and the rainbows my skin was producing in the light were blinding. Of course, it didn't really matter where I was. I was alone again and I knew that Edward didn't want me. I was at war with myself. The logical part of me knew the truth. Edward had loved someone else and had gone after me once he realized that I was his only chance at some happiness. Moreover, I knew he felt guilty and responsible for what had happened to me. After all, he had left me behind pregnant and alone. He had forced me into the waiting arms of the power hungry Volturi council. Of course, the end result of that had benefited and changed the vampire world forever. However, a small part of me was screaming louder and louder and was getting hard to ignore. That small part of me was daring me to hope that he had told me the truth and he really did love me. That he had left me all those years ago to keep me safe and that leaving me had killed him. That he had lied to me only once, when he sent me that DVD that had ripped my heart to pieces. There was something he had said that made me question the truth. He had taken everything from me when he left that might remind me of him, like my ring, and he had removed himself from all my pictures. He had deleted every picture file off my phone and he had taken my junior yearbook where there had been half a page article featuring the two of us because we had been chosen the two most likely to marry right after graduation. He had taken everything from me that was any physical evidence of him. Of course, that had all proven to be completely pointless once I realized I was pregnant. Our daughter was more than enough of a reminder of him, especially in her bronzed ringlets and her expressions that mimicked his completely, even though she had never spent a day with her father. However, he had said that when he left, he could not bear to take everything away from me. He had hidden my things with him in them underneath the floorboards in my room. This small screaming part of my head was telling me to go back to Forks and find out if he had been telling the truth. I fought it with every fiber of my being. I was scared that it wasn't true, but on the other hand, it scared me just as badly that it might be true and I had just thrown him away - the one person who could ever make me happy.

Finally, after countless hours lying on that spot of forest floor torturing myself mentally, I pushed myself off the ground and began to run towards the faint lights I could see with my enhanced vision. When I came close to the tree line, I gasped. The forest had looked familiar for a reason; the faint lights I had seen in the distance were the walled city of Volterra glittering into the night sky. I ran as fast as my feet could carry me back to my old home. I knew I could stay in the castle safely and sort things out.

As I walked towards the castle, two unfamiliar faces stopped me at the doors. I tried to press past them, never having needed permission to enter these doors before. They growled at me quietly.

I rolled my eyes at them and said, "My name is Bella, I am a former member of the guard. Jane, Alec and Marcus will welcome me with open arms."

The two vampire brutes took half a step back in shock and awe that I knew their new master's names, let alone that I had the gall to say I would be in favor with them. They looked at each other for a moment and then one of them ran into the castle. Before I knew it, I heard two pairs of vampire feet moving swiftly towards me. The doors were flung open, the guard returned with an abashed look on his face, and Alec stood there looking at me with a beaming smile spread across his face. I laughed lightly at my friend and carefully wrapped my arms around him in a loose hug. I was back in familiar walls, with people I could trust. I heard the doors close behind me and I felt like I was as close to home as I would ever be outside of a small rainy town in Washington.

**End notes: Okay… I'm evil I know ;) But they won't be apart for too long… Do you really think that now he knows she's okay and has a way to contact her he's going to let her go?**

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	19. Chapter 19 Volterra Changed

**A/N: Okay… I'm sorry this is later than normal and that it's so short… but the next chapter is long…. I promise…**

**Thanks Jennifer Masen… you were a huge encouragement :) **

**Thanks to all my reviewers… you guys are amazing!**

Chapter 19 - Volterra changed

I did feel like I was home, but it was like going home after an extended vacation. Everything was familiar, yet everything had changed. My room was the same as before. Nothing had been moved since the day Ness and I left, but it still felt like something was missing. We were gone – and our room was nothing but a shell now. I could not bring myself to raise the curtain to look at the portrait of Carlisle that was underneath. Reminders of the Cullens would make the pain I was feeling even worse.

I spent time with the new council, and it seemed the new vampire royalty were doing a phenomenal job. They felt the weight and responsibility of their office and treated it with great respect and humility. The guard was larger than it ever had been, attracting individuals with extremely powerful talents. Now that the guard was not a forced position and members could leave any time they wished, with no hard feelings, the group had flourished and thrived. The Volturi were no longer something to be scared of, but something to be respected and honored. The job of policing the vampire world was still theirs; however, there was some mercy in their justice and now not every crime meant the loss of life.

One large change was that vampires could now tell certain humans the truth. They called it 'Bella's Exception,' and I blushed at hearing how they had honored me. Human mates were no longer forced to die or be turned; they could live out their human lives with their vampire mates if they chose. This exception also had another rule. The choice to be turned was in the human's hands alone, unless their lives were on the line. The pain of Edward's and my situation would never be repeated and I was thankful that something had come out of our failed romance.

I spent my days and nights letting my misery have me. I succumbed to all the pain I had pushed aside for my daughter's sake. I felt it all. The added pain of Edward's attempted lie had only made things worse for me. I could not bear it and sometimes had to distract myself. When I needed to get out, I would attend the council and offer my input, which was always respected as a member of the council itself. I spent time with Jane and Alec, renewing my friendship with both of them. Alec still loved me deeply, but I hoped that he had accepted the fact that my heart was taken, even though my love did not truly return my affection. Every day the small voice continued to scream at me, continually shouting that Edward really loved me. I tried to block it out, but no matter what I did, it steadily grew louder in my head. I no longer allowed myself to enter my dream-like state. Anytime I succumbed, my brain would put me back in that hotel room in France and the outcome was very different. Instead of running from Edward, I had believed him, he took me home and I was his forever. I hated waking from this dream, but I knew that in reality, he would leave me again and I could not go through that pain without seeking my own eradication. Even now, I knew that I could ask the council to grant me my death. However, as much as I wanted the pain to stop, the small voice in my head would not allow me to make such a request. Even the remote chance of being with him, no matter how ludicrous it was, would not allow me to take my own life. Edward still existed and so there was still a slight chance. The moment Edward no longer was part of this world was the day I would leave it.

Nessie called me a month after I arrived in Volterra, but I could not talk to her yet. I ignored her calls repeatedly. Two weeks after the first call, as my phone rang yet again, Jane peppered me with questions as to why I did not answer. I reluctantly told her that I could not talk to Nessie. She was just going to try to convince me that Edward really loved me. At this, Jane was appalled. The look on her face said everything.

After a few moments she pushed out, "Bella, you would ignore your own daughter? Nessie would not lie to you Bella. If you talked to her, she would tell you truth."

I slowly shook my head at my friend and explained, "Nessie can lie with her words. She cannot lie through her touch, but through her words, she can. She is trying to do what she thinks will make me happy. He doesn't love me, Jane. He is acting out of guilt. He doesn't love me."

Jane looked at me with a calculating expression for a moment before saying, "Bella, I don't think you completely believe that. Somewhere in there, you are hoping he truly does love you. I will not put up with this. Even if you don't want to talk to Ness, I am going to."

With that, Jane took my phone and ran out of the room. I could pursue her but I knew that eventually she would talk to Ness, so I allowed her to use my phone and get it over with.

Over an hour later, with a stone-cold look on her face, Jane entered my room and silently handed me my phone. She looked at me with an emotion that I did not understand, and then walked right back out of my room. I struggled for a moment and then realized that whatever my daughter had told her had given Jane no hope at all. With that thought, I allowed the pain to pull me back under.

**Okay… short I know… more coming this weekend… and it's much longer..**

**You'll get to see why Jane reacted the way she did ;)**

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	20. Chapter 20 Revelations

**A/N: Okay I know it's been over a week… I'm sorry :( Real life has been kind of crazy on my end. I honestly don't think I'll post again until after Easter… but if the reviews are amazing who knows? ;)**

**This chapter is crazy long to make up for the brevity of the last one… enjoy :)**

**Once again… Stephenie Meyer's characters… not mine**

Chapter 20 - Revelations

I had remained in my zombie-like state for three days before it was broken by a knock on the door. Mechanically I got off the floor and opened it. There, on the other side, with a blinding smile on her face, was my little one. I threw my arms around her and hugged her tightly against me. I had missed her so much. Ness giggled and wrapped her arms around me. I had forgotten how hot her skin was against mine. After a few moments, I pushed her away from me slightly so I could get a good look at her. My little one was glowing. Jacob was doing wonders for her. I could see the love radiating around her. I still couldn't believe that she was marrying one of my old friends. The idea was somewhat strange to me, but I knew that since Jake was a werewolf he wouldn't age as long as he was phasing regularly.

Finally, Nessie said, "Mom, you look horrible. Aunt Alice would kill you if she saw you like this."

Nessie gave me a look of feigned horror and I returned one of surprise. She was calling Alice her aunt? After a moment, it sunk in that the family had welcomed her as one of their own with open arms. I was happy that even though Edward and I were no longer together, they loved my little one enough to treat her like family.

I finally said, "Ness, how many members of the family know who I am?"

Ness smiled guiltily and said, "Just dad and Aunt Alice. No one else knows - yet."

Finally, I took in a couple of deep breaths and said, "Ness, I am not exactly working to be a runway model. Right now, I am finally allowing myself to deal with the pain that I put off for so long. Edward's little performance in Paris has not helped that one bit."

Ness hesitated for a second and then she said, "Mom, I need to show you something."

I took a huge step back and growled out, "Ness, I don't want to see anything your father wants to show me. I know that he lied in Paris. I know he doesn't really love me. I know he doesn't – want me"

At the last two words, I broke down again. Ness tried to come over and comfort me but I pushed her away.

With a heavy sigh she gently said, "Mom, I'll be back. I love you."

With that, she walked across the room and gently shut the door behind her.

About an hour later, I heard a frustrated and hard pounding on the door.

I growled out, "Come in," and the door swung open to reveal the whole council and my daughter looking down on me.

Their expressions surprised me completely. Jane was ecstatic with a giant tooth-baring smile spread over her face. Alec had a small tight smile on his lips but pain and agony in his eyes. Marcus looked down at me lovingly like a father with a sweet and gentle smile over his wise face. Ness was almost vibrating from excitement.

I looked at them all warily and said, "What is going on here? I'm not exactly in a good mood."

Jane looked at me and her smile intensified as she said, "You aren't in a good mood now, but you will be. The council has decided. You have no choice. You will allow Nessie to share what she has come here to show you."

Something about their determination terrified me. My daughter was going to show me something that was going to change everything for me. I knew this from the look on their faces. Whatever it was, I could tell that they all thought it was a good thing. However, my version of something good and theirs were vastly different. I was not going to allow anything that might cause me even more pain than I was already feeling.

I stood up with a determined stance and said, "No, you cannot make this decision for me. I will stop this here and now. I will not allow anything else to make the pain worse. I can tell from all of your expressions that you think this will be a good thing, but usually when someone thinks something will be good for me, it ends up being very bad."

Unbidden my mind traveled back into my weak human memories and the day Edward left me for my own good. I could remember the disaster of that fateful birthday party, waking up in the hospital to find my ring missing and watching the DVD that had ripped my heart apart.

Suddenly, I had three pairs of vampire hands holding me down while Nessie came down towards me, conflict raging in her eyes.

Slowly she said, "Mom you need to see this. I will force it on you if I have to, but I would rather you watched this willingly. Believe me, this will not hurt you. In fact, I think it may heal you. Please mom, just trust me. I wouldn't do this if I thought it had any chance of hurting you."

I saw the pleading look in my daughter's eyes. She truly thought that what she was doing would help me. I knew that I had no choice in the matter, really, and decided that I would rather save myself some dignity.

I scowled at the three vampires holding me down and said, "Jane, Alec, Marcus - let me up. I will watch this."

A triumphant look spread over everyone's faces except for Alec, who turned and ran from the room. Jane looked back slightly and a pained looked flashed across her face for her brother. I sat up and Ness walked towards me with her hand outstretched. Wordlessly, she touched my cheek.

Suddenly, I was looking through Edward's eyes. It's my birthday. I can hear his thoughts and the voices around him, including my own. I can also hear the thoughts of the others. Startled, I backed away. Ness looked at me with a frustrated expression.

I shakily said, "Ness, how did you do that?"

Ness paused a moment, and then a smile blossomed on her face as she gently said, "Mom, Alice saw that I would be able to develop this use of my power. It only works with dad as far as I know. Alice knew that if you saw everything through his perspective and thoughts you would finally understand. You need to watch this mom. You need to know the truth – finally."

With that Ness stretched her hand back out towards me and the onslaught of Edward's memories began again.

At first it was flashes of the months we spent together before he left.

The first day in the cafeteria. _I don't know why, but I feel the strangest impulse to protect Isabella Swan from Jessica. That poor girl has no idea how vile Jessica really is. How frustrating that I cannot hear her. Not that I would ever be a good protector for her. A vampire helping a human - there's a laugh. If I got that close to her, I would probably kill her._

The first day in Biology._ I will not hurt this girl. She is innocent. _

Edward lying in the snow in the Denali wilderness. _I will face this. She is just a girl. I will not let a girl keep me from my family. I will not hurt her or her family. Besides, she is just far too interesting to lose. Never mind the fact that her face is all I can see in my mind, and all I have been able to see since the day I left._

The lunch when he came back from Alaska. _I am focusing on her because I want to be ready for her scent to hit me. Not because I find her completely fascinating. I will go to biology today. I can handle it. I am very curious about this girl. Maybe my curiosity will keep her alive. I can do this._

The first time we talked in biology. _I will introduce myself and attempt to erase her memories of me from last week. "Hello." _

_Bella is going to look at me, maybe her eyes will help me to - my God, I can feel my hatred of her for existing dissipate. I don't know how I could ever hate someone this sweet and fragile and –beautiful. No, even though she is beautiful, it's better than just being beautiful; her face is interesting. This lab is easy for her. She is intelligent, then, for a human, of course that does not surprise me for some reason. She hates the cold and wet; maybe she should go back to where she is from? She would be a lot safer there. I'm just not sure that is what I want. If she left, I don't know if I would be able to keep myself from following her. What? What is going on with me? She is just a simple human girl!_

_She sent herself here? What does that mean? Wow. This girl is completely selfless. She considers others far above herself. Amazing. I want to take away the pain that is on her face. Of course, touching her would be completely impossible. I would kill her. For some reason, it is agony to know that I cannot touch this girl. I cannot afford to find this girl fascinating and already I want to know everything about her. She cannot afford me to find her fascinating._

Hunting with Carlisle after that first day back. _I should leave again. This is not safe for her. I can leave for a year or two. Then she will be gone. She will move on with her future; go away to college, get married - I can see the whole thing in my mind. Her walking down the aisle on her father's arm, dressed in white. Whoa. The image of her getting married is painful. Odd. I don't get it. I am going to leave again. I just want to see her one more time, one more day with Bella._

Arriving at school that next morning. _Where is she? I need to prepare myself for her scent. Right, whom am I fooling? My whole existence is centered on this girl now and not myself anymore._

The incident with the van. _NO, not her! Not her! Focus Edward, you need to be concerned about damage control and exposure here, not how amazing her body feels against yours. What is going on with me? Somehow, in this instant, I shifted from her potential killer to her protector and it feels right somehow that I would protect this girl. Wait! No, I cannot think this way. I will kill her if I am around this girl too long. _

_She is too observant! She saw everything! I am going to have to lie and then ignore her completely, and the thought of that kills me. I hate having to lie to this girl, but I have to protect her from my world and I have to protect my family. _

"_Why did you save me then?" - Bella. _

_The truth for once, "I don't know." _

_Agonizing. I will commit her face to memory. She really is heartbreakingly perfect. I need to go. Now._

Back at school after the accident._ I should be setting her up to protect my family from scrutiny but I just can't. She is too honest and it would be unchivalrous of me to slander this girl, especially when she has proved to be so trustworthy. _

Home that evening. _Jasper and Rosalie want her dead? I will not allow this. Would I fight against them though? Yes, I would fight against my family to protect this girl. I could take her away so they wouldn't have a chance to touch her, but could I be around her that long without killing her? The idea of killing this girl though, it would kill me too. Carlisle will stop Rose but Jasper- _

"_That is not what I was going to say. I was going to ask you a favor. I know you love me. Thanks. Nevertheless, I would really appreciate it if you wouldn't try to kill Bella. First of all, Edward is serious and I don't want you two fighting. Secondly, she's my friend. At least she's going to be." – Alice. _

_Wow, Alice's vision is sure - arm in arm with Bella. Ugh, Alice is calling my name in her mind. _

"_Edward, I love her too. Or I will. It's not the same, but I want her around for that." –Alice._

_WHAT? _

_I hear my voice said in shock, "Love her, too?" _

_Then visions flashed in front of my eyes. I did not love Bella Swan, yet, but it would be so easy to fall in love with her. Fighting it was going to be difficult. I did not love her yet, but unless I did something, I would and I couldn't sentence her to death by becoming that close to me. I would not hurt this girl. I- damn it's already too late-I love her. I have to get out of here now! RUN!_

The days and weeks after the accident. _Just one look. I want to look into her eyes and figure out what she's thinking. It is so maddening to have her sitting here next to me and I can't even look at her. Every day it gets harder. The pain is overwhelming. The longer I ignore her, the harder it becomes. I was no longer just in danger of loving this girl. I loved her, but I could not act on it. I would kill her and I would never be able to live with myself if that happened. I will not destroy her future. Who am I fooling? She may not notice me and I may not talk to her but I hang on every word she says, and I am in the minds of others watching her through their thoughts all the time. Pretending to ignore her is the limit of what I can do._

Mike Newton asking me to the dance. _I was suddenly insanely furious at this boy. Even if she said no to him now, she would say yes to someone, someday. I can see her whole future before me and I can't stand it. I don't want her with anyone else. Alice was right, I am not strong enough. I feel envious of this boy, or whatever boy she would prefer. I am jealous. Damn! Newton noticed me paying attention to their conversation; Bella will notice too. She's not going with him? I feel relief at those words. But now I am considering my rivals. I do love this girl. Mike turned away, I can't see her anymore. I am going to look. I can't take this. It's like a sharp relief, as if I haven't breathed in far too long. I could get permanently lost in these eyes. Looking at her feels as if I have triumphed rather than lost for some reason. I know the guilt is coming and I should not allow it, but I can't resist her._

The conversation after Biology.

"_You could have saved yourself all this regret." –Bella._

"_Regret? Regret for what?"_

"_Not letting the stupid van squish me!" -Bella. _

_How could she think that? Saving her from that van was the only decent thing I've done since the day I've met her._

I saw everything. The day in the meadow, when he decided he wanted me more than my blood. Slowly, as I saw his thoughts of our time together, it hit me over and over in larger and larger tidal waves and it sunk down into my very soul. He had really, truly loved me. That changed for some reason later, but I could not doubt anymore that Edward had at once point really loved me. I saw everything up to my dream the night before my birthday party.

Suddenly, Nessie stopped and I looked at my little one. She was exhausted from sharing all that with me. Her whole body was shaking from fatigue. This form of memory sharing was very hard on my daughter. It reminded me of the effort it took to take down both parts of my shield and use other's gifts. It was a skill I had developed but once I had mastered it, due to the levels of energy it took, I rarely used it.

After a few moments to catch her breath, Nessie whispered out, "Mom, I need to rest. I am exhausted. These were the lighter versions of dad's memories. The next few I have are much more intense, and in a lot more detail. You are going to see every piece from dad's perspective with one exception. They are going to take a lot more out of me. I need to rest and feed before I can show you."

I nodded silently at my little one and slipped out of the room so she could sleep. I had so much to think about and I knew I desperately needed to finally know all of it. I needed to know what could change so abruptly in two days that made him stop loving me.

I wandered the halls of the immense castle, only breaking my reverie to politely greet others as I passed them. The more I considered it, the more in awe I was. In two very short days, Edward had gone from loving me completely to telling me that he didn't want me. I wondered what exactly it was that had changed everything for him. I hoped that the night we had spent together was not the cause of my loss. I would hate to think that the creation of our beautiful and perfect daughter was the event that had caused him to stop loving me. I could not believe that could be it. His change had to have happened after that event. I could not reconcile that he would have made love to me like that if he hadn't loved me in that moment. However, a small nagging voice kept bugging me with the idea that the experience had been so horrible for him, that he had stopped loving me. The only thing I could combat that with was the idea that he had still asked me to promise to marry him. The voice came back nastily with the idea that he had done that out of duty. His old-fashioned morals had demanded it, since he had taken my virginity from me.

A couple of hours before the sun rose, Alec stopped me in the hall. The look on his face was one of confusion, pain and frustration. I wondered what was affecting him so severely.

After a moment I said, "Alec, what's wrong? I can tell something is on your mind. My friend, what has your thoughts so occupied?"

The look of agony on Alec's face intensified and his eyes burned through me searching mine for something.

Finally, the pain evident in his voice, he choked out, "Bella, I have to do this. I know what you will say, but I still must. Bella, you know I'm in love with you. I want to remind you there is another choice, another option. I know that you'll choose him, but I needed to remind you."

With that, Alec looked down at the floor dejectedly and stood there in silence. I knew exactly how Alec felt about me. I thought he had accepted that there would never be anyone else for me besides Edward. I would never truly get over him. I wanted to hug my friend and try to take his pain away, but I knew that would only make things worse for him.

I carefully and gently replied, "Alec, you will always be one of my dearest friends, but I love him. I always have and nothing will change that. Even if I spend the rest of my existence alone, I will always love him and I won't be able to be with anyone else. I wish my heart had room for more, but it doesn't. I'm so sorry, Alec. I didn't want things to be this way."

Alec looked at the floor for a few more moments and then slowly lifted his face to look at me. His mouth held a small controlled smile, but his eyes were full of pain.

Finally, with a controlled voice, he said, "I figured that was the case. I just had to try one more time before you went back to him."

With that, Alec swiftly turned and walked away from me as quickly as he could without breaking into a run. I then wandered into the night, strolling through the high walled gardens that surrounded the castle and wondered why Alec was so sure that I would end up with Edward. I tried not to hope, but something inside me wondered if I had it all wrong and that Edward had really meant what he said. Either way, I was about to find out.

When the sun finally broke over the horizon, I slowly made my way back to my room. I was hoping that Ness would be awake and ready to continue with what she had come to show me. Now that I had seen so much, I had to know the truth finally, no matter how painful it was. I walked into the room and looked over at the bed. Ness was just starting to move around. As she began to pull out of deep sleep and head towards a waking state, I heard her talk lovingly of Jacob. I smiled at my daughter's sleeping form. She truly loved him. I was thrilled to see that they were meant for each other. I could tell as she mumbled into her pillow that she truly loved him. I was glad that one of us would get our happy ending.

Eventually, Renesmee's eyes blinked open slowly as she adjusted to the light level of the room. She looked around for a moment until she located my face and then she broke out into a smile.

Ness took in a deep breath of air, and then brightly said, "Alright mom, let's go hunting. I want to get this finished so I can go home to my Jacob."

As she said the last part, her face turned a bright tomato red and she looked away from me with embarrassment.

I laughed at her and said, "You know, your father used to turn my skin that exact shade as well."

Suddenly, my mind threw me back into a mixture of his shared memories and my own dim human ones. The pain of reliving those moments was overwhelming. It took me a good five minutes to compose myself enough to open my mouth again.

Before I could say anything, Ness looked at me inquisitively and said, "You still love him very deeply, don't you, Mom?"

I couldn't get the words out and so I looked at my daughter and nodded twice before looking away. I did not want her to see the painful expression that was developing across my face.

Once I composed myself, I turned back to her, with false enthusiasm, and said, "Let's go hunting, shall we?"

Ness gave me a hard look and then smirked at me before nodding.

As we approached the gates, we saw a rather large group waiting at the entrance to the ancient castle. Jane looked up, and upon seeing me, smiled and beckoned us towards her. I walked swiftly to her and motioned for Ness to follow me.

Once we reached them, Jane smiled and said, "Bella, we would like for you to go hunting with us. I think it might be interesting to see you hunt this way, since this comes to you naturally, unlike the rest of us."

I looked around the group and saw Alec and Marcus looking at me, along with a large amount of the original guard that I had served with. Now, instead of their previous disgust at my hunting preference, they looked at me with hope and excitement. I think they were looking for a way to make this hunting style easier on them.

I softly chuckled and said, "I don't know how much help it will be to join us, but I am more than willing to have the company. Hunting is always more fun in larger groups. Where are we going to go so that our activities won't be too obvious or effect the environment too much?"

Jane smiled at me again and motioned for Ness and I to follow her. Behind me, I heard the whole group fall into formation as we moved swiftly away from the castle and into the wilderness. Once we reached the forest line, we moved at vampire speed through the trees and went further into the forest than I had ever been. As suddenly as we had started moving, we stopped and the group centered around me again. I was suddenly reminded of all the times I had worked as part of the guard. Part of me contemplated the idea of rejoining the guard now that the council was full of members who had good motives. However, a large part of me knew that for many reasons I could not make decisions like that until I had seen the rest of what Ness was here to show me. I broke from my thoughts and focused on the group standing around me.

I took in a slow deep breath and said, "Again, I don't know how much this will help you, but I am willing to try. Realize that a lot of the reason I hunt the way I do is because I remember being human and could not stand the idea of hurting someone else, someone like me. Every human has a life story; one that they deserve the chance to live. We should not be ending their lives prematurely. That is the real reason that I chose to hunt the way I do. I also knew that living this way was possible, long before I became a vampire, which was also a help to me. Now, I am going to hunt. Feel free to watch from here or follow me. I will not give myself over to my senses to the point where you would be in danger."

After my long-winded speech, I stopped for a moment, waiting for the guard to organize themselves. I realized, in that moment, that everything I had said echoed the tenor of conversations Edward and I had had about me remaining human. He had not wanted me to change because he was concerned for my soul, but also because he didn't want to cut my life short. In this moment, I finally realized that I now understood where he was coming from. I would not want to hurt him if he were human. I would have just as hard a time turning him. I gasped at my realization and shook it off, shifting into hunting mode.

Silently I ran through the forest, giving myself over to my senses. I had to constantly remind myself that the vampires following me were doing so to observe and would not disturb my hunt. After a couple of moments, I came up behind the mountain lion I had been tracking. I paused for a moment and then sprang at him, snapping his neck while I was still in the air. I quickly bit into his artery and drank the blood while it was still warm. The sensation of the thick liquid coursing down my throat made me happy and dulled the constant ache. Finally, once I had drained the beast dry, I stood up and turned to face the hunters behind me. They all looked at me in shock and awe.

Marcus spoke up and said, "Bella, how do you hunt using your senses without turning and going after human blood?"

I sniffed the air cautiously and finally noticed the smell of human blood in the air.

I snickered and then said, "I give myself over to my senses completely but only once I have found my target. Once I have given myself over to my senses, I only track through the animal's heartbeat and not their smell. I do not breathe until I recompose myself. Not breathing helps me keep from switching targets."

The whole guard who had followed me looked at me with amazement, and I began to hear hushed excited whispers from individuals anxious to try the new hunting technique.

Four hours later, one by one the guard had experienced my way of hunting. For many it was great improvement for them. Only two members almost slipped up when they accidentally took a breath, however we were there to stop them from allowing anything tragic to happen. Finally, once the whole guard had satiated their thirst, we headed back to the castle. It was time for Ness to finish sharing Edward's memories.

The trip back to the city seemed to take forever, especially once we left the forest and were forced to run at human speeds. Ness sensed my impatience and laughed at me quietly. I turned and gave her a stern look, which only set her off even more.

Between giggles, she burst out, "Mom, you are hilarious. You know what memories are coming next. Seriously, I don't know why you are so anxious. By now you should know that Dad loves you completely."

At her last statement, she smiled at me and moved slightly faster towards the castle gates, which had just come into view. I looked after her. How could she think that these next memories would make such a difference? I knew that at some point I would find the memory of Edward leaving me because he no longer wanted or loved me. How could she think that after I saw that, I would ever want to go back to the Cullens again? I shook my head, moved through the gates, and followed behind Ness, returning to our room.

Once we got in and settled, Ness walked over to the bed and sat across from me with her expression serious.

Finally, she said, "Mom, Dad did skip over one specific memory. He said he thought you would understand him not wanting to share something so private between the two of you. I also had no desire to see my conception. So, we'll be starting with the next morning."

I looked at my daughter and smiled. I could completely understand her discomfort at the idea of having to watch the intimate details between her father and I. I was glad he had not shared that memory with her. It was the memory of Edward that I held most precious above the rest. It was almost sacred in my mind. As much as I wanted to see his side of it, the idea of my daughter having such intimate knowledge was enough to keep my curiosity at bay.

I smiled at my sweet, innocent daughter and said, "Ness, I don't think I want you seeing that particular memory anyway. Too awkward, for both of us."

Ness smiled widely and mumbled her relief that Edward had not given her that memory so softly that I could not make out what she was saying completely. Then she reached out with her hands and touched me, flooding my head with more memories.

I saw everything through Edward's eyes. I heard everything he heard in those two crucial days and I sat watching with disbelief. After Ness finished showing it to me, I begged her to show me the memories again. She smiled and happily obliged. As I looked at them a second time, my mind began to wrap around the impossibilities I was seeing. The love flowing out of him as he asked me to be his. The triumph and joy he felt when I agreed to wear his promise ring. The excitement for my birthday and the anticipation for the CD he was going to give me; a CD I would never get to open. The tragedy that was my birthday party. The pain he felt as he watched me pass out and had to fight his brother to keep me safe. The agony and love he felt as he decided on his terrible course. The feeling of his heart breaking as he slipped the promise ring from my finger and the determination of his course as he walked away from me. The love he felt for me through all of it. The full 24 hours it had taken him to record the DVD and the frustration every time he had to start again because he broke down in the middle of it, not able to lie to me. The pain at having to lie to me about how he really felt. The agony at sealing the envelope and sending the DVD off that would allow me to move on with my life. The pain and agony he felt for years afterwards. His inability to be around anyone in his family because of their love for each other and his decision to leave them for so long. Him desperately trying to distract himself by hunting Victoria in South America. His decision to come back for me and tell me the truth. His tortured pain at the fact that I had disappeared and was possibly dead. The pain and betrayal he had felt at the idea that I had become pregnant with someone else's child after hearing about it from Kate. The envy and hurt at the idea that someone else had been able to give me what he couldn't. His disgust at Tanya's attempts to make him forget his pain. His profound relief to rejoin the family. The extreme suffering at the idea that he had permanently lost me. The decision to look for me. The devastation in his heart when he lost my trail and all trace of me had vanished. The desire to end his life at the thought of my death. The sliver of hope that kept him from going to Volterra. The hatred at the Volturi for their obvious attempt to get him to join them ten years later. The shock at the familiarity of the hooded figure's scent. His hatred for the unnamed girl in his meadow, marring his memories of me. The shock at the sight of my hair. His odd desire to protect Ness and care for her. His disgust at Jacob's imprint on Ness. His confusion at his almost father-like affection towards this half vampire girl. The nagging whispering thought at the idea that I might have been pregnant with his child and the repeated dismissal of this idea, not wanting to consider the pain that would have put me through. His conflicted response to Nessie's request to walk her down the aisle at her wedding. The agony of the idea of seeing someone in a wedding dress who reminded him so much of me and his inability to be in that situation which would remind him too much of what he had lost. The hatred he felt towards himself at having to say no to Ness and seeing the disappointment on her face. His annoyance at Alice's insistence that he tell her the whole story. The pain of telling our story to someone else. His shock at Nessie's mental slip. The overwhelming feelings of the idea that he might not be delusional. His harsh questioning of our daughter, not being able to believe her, not willing to hope. His awe and hope that finally bloomed once he realized he could not doubt her. His overwhelming love for his daughter. His all-consuming hope at the idea that I might still love and want him. The rejoicing at the knowledge that there had never been anyone else. His overwhelming joy at seeing my face again. The all-powerful love I felt radiating through him as he told me how much he loved me. His pain at my rejection. His determination to make me see the truth. His hope at Alice's predication that this would be the way for him to get me back. His hope and fear as he sent Nessie to me. Then finally, it all stopped and I slowly looked up into my daughter's face.

Ness looked at me for a moment, smiled and then walked silently from the room. I was thankful to have such an understanding daughter. She could see my need to be alone and process everything she had shown me. Once I heard the door close behind me, I collapsed onto the bed and began to process what I had seen. I knew it had to be the truth. Ness could not lie through her thoughts. I also knew that Edward wouldn't be able to lie this way either. Nessie's gift would prevent him from portraying false memories. The idea that he had left to keep me safe, and because he loved me, was completely overwhelming. I looked at everything I had seen from him in the past year and saw it through a different light. The pain that had been so evident on his face was not for another girl. There never was anyone else. He had not tossed me aside and been hurt by someone else but had been in pain because he loved me and I was gone from his life. He had been hunting Victoria in South America to keep me safe. Kate had told the truth, but in a way that she knew I would misinterpret. I really couldn't blame her after the lie I had told. He thought I was probably dead and that I had been pregnant with someone else's child. What had we done to each other? I knew that if I had to go back and relive my experiences that I would have made the exact same decisions again, but it hurt to know that I could have been happy with Edward so long ago. We did not need to go through all the pain we both had been put through. Part of me was somewhat angry with him. He had left me because he wanted to keep me safe. He underestimated my love for him. However, now that I had lived as a vampire for so many years, I could understand how he could feel that way. It was so easy to trivialize the lives of humans. They were so frail and weak and their lives were so short and insignificant when compared to the eternity that I had stretched out before me. I could understand and see how Edward could think it was his place to make such a decision for me. His decision was not right, but his motives were completely pure and based out of love. He had underestimated my love for him. He had no idea how much his leaving had hurt me. I knew someday I was going to have to have Ness show him what I was like without him, but I knew that would be much further down the road. Suddenly, I was hit with the realization that I knew what I needed to do next. No matter what pain he had caused, I loved him with every fiber of my being and I needed him. I had only run away from him because I loved him and thought he did not love me. However, now I knew the truth. Edward truly loved me as much as I loved him. He truly wanted me and he had never stopped loving or wanting me. With that realization, I ran across the room at full vampire speed and began throwing my things back into my suitcases. I was going home to my Edward. He loved me and I was going home to him.

A few minutes later, I threw the door open and found Nessie on the other side. She took a quick look at my face and a smile bloomed across her features.

Quickly, with obvious excitement, she said, "We're going home, aren't we?"

I beamed with joy at her and simply nodded my head. Ness walked past me into the room and started to giggle as she pointed at the already packed luggage.

I smiled with slight embarrassment and said, "What? I'm going home the second I say goodbye to the council. Edward really loves me and I'm not spending one more second than necessary away from him."

I realized that my statement was a bit over the top but I didn't care. I was still completely overwhelmed by the fact that he really truly loved me.

Sarcastically, Ness shot back at me, "Mom, are you sure you are going to be able to handle the flight home?"

I laughed at my little one and said, "Only because I know that flying is faster than swimming and running there."

She looked at me with wide eyes and smiled.

Then she softly said, "We both get our happily ever after, don't we?"

I nodded and ran from the room for the great hall. It was time to leave Volterra behind for good.

I ran into the large room and saw three pale white faces beaming at me. Jane and Marcus looked at me with joy all over their faces. Marcus was happy to see someone get the kind of love he had lost at the hands of his brother-in-law. Jane was thrilled for me because we were friends and I knew she was trying very hard to keep thoughts of Eleazar far from her thoughts. Alec's smile was genuine because he loved me and knew I was getting what I wanted.

However, the pain in his eyes was still there and after a couple of moments, he walked over to me and whispered so low that only I could hear, "Bella, I am happy for you. I love you always. Be happy. Goodbye."

Then Alec moved as quickly as he could from the room. I looked at Jane and Marcus. They each hugged me in turn and said their goodbyes after promising to visit whenever they were near. I, in turn, promised to keep in contact and I jokingly told them that I would keep an eye on them.

They both laughed and Jane said, "Bella, your plane is waiting on the runway for you. Take it with our gratitude. We are so happy for you, dear one. We will see you soon."

With another round of hugs, I walked from the room and ran the rest of the way to grab my bags. I was going home to Edward.

**Okay and there it is…. You can guess what the next chapter will contain… but these kids aren't done yet…. I intentionally only gave you glimpses into Edward's mind. I have a ton of Edward's perspective for the other side of this story… I hope this answers some of the many questions you had :)**

**By the way… anyone else excited that Stephenie Meyer has a new book coming out?**

**Review please :)**


	21. Chapter 21 Home

**A/N: I don't own the original story or characters. They are the property of Stephenie Meyer. The original plot is mine, and don't steal it!**

**I am soooo sorry that this has taken so long. My in-laws were here for 2 weeks. I haven't had a single second to myself for the past two weeks with the exception of an hour last Wednesday to post the last chapter. Updates will be more frequent now I promise! In fact you should have the next chapter before the end of the week :)**

**Thanks to all my reviewers… the reviews I got the last couple weeks were the bright spot in what was otherwise a stressful and strained and way too long visit. **

**I also apologize for any errors in this chapter, had trouble editing this time…**

**And after a huge A/N… here ya go!**

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Chapter 21- Home

The plane ride was excruciatingly long. Ness laughed at me periodically as I fidgeted restlessly in my seat. I was the only restless vampire in history. Now that I was headed home to Edward, I could hardly hold still. Part of me thought that it would have been better to run and swim home. I knew it would take longer, but at least I would be doing something besides longing to have Edward's arms wrapped around me –finally! Once Ness fell asleep, I smiled down on my beautiful daughter. I wished I had allowed Edward to be there for her growing up. He had missed so much. I wondered if he would blame me for not giving him the chance to know his daughter until now. I should have contacted him and given her a chance to know her father sooner. However, if he had come to Volterra would Aro have been able to resist conscripting him into the guard? The idea of it made me shudder. I had considered this many times while I was still in the guard and rejected the idea for the same reasons. I knew I had made the right decisions in that regard, but I couldn't help but feel like I had cheated Edward and Ness from having the father-daughter relationship they could have had. I hoped that Ness and Edward would not hold it against me. After all, we had eternity to make up for that. Of course, now Ness would be marrying Jacob, which would change things drastically. I flinched at the thought. I knew and trusted Jake, but the idea of anyone loving my daughter that way was hard to cope with. In my eyes, she was still the little girl that I loved more than my own life. I knew she was an adult now and she needed to live her own life, but it was still hard as a mother to give her up to someone else. I just hoped that Jake would be willing to have us as part of her life. I began to wonder if Jake knew who I was and how he would react to the fact that he was marrying my daughter if he was unaware.

Ness woke up next to me as we began our descent into New York City. We would only be here for an hour to have the plane checked over and refueled before we were off again. We would be remaining on the plane. If I left, I knew the temptation to run the rest of the way would become too much. Instead, I decided to ask her about Jacob.

I took a deep breath and said, "Ness, does Jacob know who I really am?"

She looked at me for a moment and laughed.

Then she said, "No, Mom, he had no idea who my parents really are. I believe it is going to be quite a shock for him. Thank goodness, imprinting means unconditional love. He won't be able to leave me, no matter how awkward it is for him when he finds out that he had a crush on his future mother-in-law."

I looked at my daughter in shock. How had she known that Jake had a crush on me? Ness looked into my face and burst into giggles again.

Then she rolled her eyes and said, "Mom – he told me he had only fallen for one girl before. It took every ounce of my composure not to laugh when he said your name. After dad found out who I was, he was so tempted to tell Jake the truth, but I convinced him it would be better coming from you. Jake will have a bigger problem with the fact that Edward is my father than he will with the fact that you are my mom I think. They two of them kind of despise each other –still."

I laughed at that. Edward had always disliked Jacob immensely, but he had never liked any of my male friends, because he knew their intentions were not exactly honorable.

I turned to Ness and said, "Telling Jake is going to be a blast. You'll have to let me handle that one, however I'll have no problem with an audience."

I winked at Ness and then buckled my seatbelt even thought I knew I had no need of it. One of those left over habits from my human days. I could burst open the material like it was a thread anyway, if I needed to.

As the plane took off again my thoughts began to focus back on Edward. There was so much to be said; so many things needed to be fixed between the two of us. I knew it wasn't going to be easy, but I couldn't wait to see him and tell him for the first time in so long that I loved him completely with nothing holding either one of us back. I was finally getting my happy ending with Edward.

When we finally landed at the airport, Ness handed me my Volturi robe.

She giggled and said, "Aunt Alice thought it would be better to surprise them this way. Everyone will be there, except dad. They are all going to stay away from the house for a couple days. We are all going on a shopping trip to give you guys a chance to reconnect."

I smiled at my daughter and was suddenly overwhelmingly grateful for Alice's visions. I knew she had planned all this. I just wondered what she had seen that would mean everyone would have to leave town. I felt like I could blush at that thought, and was happy that everything was going to turn out okay in the end.

As we walked out of the terminal, I saw a huge crowd waiting for us. Everyone was there, all of the Cullens and most of the werewolves as well. I was curious as to the presence of the wolves but figured it had something to do with Jacob and let it drop. I stood back as everyone threw his or her arms around Nessie in turn. Then I picked Alice out of the crowd. She was buzzing with excitement. I smiled at the little pixie that could hardly contain herself. Then, suddenly she was running at me, throwing her arms around me.

Once she had me in a vice grip, she squealed into my ears, "Finally!"

Jasper stepped back and let out a loud laugh at his sweet and silly wife, however even he had no idea why Alice was throwing her arms around me. One by one, every eye was on me.

Finally, Carlisle cleared his throat and said, "Alice, would you like to tell me why you threw your arms around Marie?"

Alice giggled and murmured to me, "It's time."

I smiled widely down at the pixie and looked towards my family. Then, with a deep breath, I put my hands up to my hood and slowly brought it down.

I heard gasps all around me in odd intervals. I looked into all their shocked faces with a smile beaming across my own. Esme finally stepped towards me. Once she was inches from my face, she said my name so softly only I was able to hear it. I looked into her loving face and nodded as my smile became even bigger.

Then Esme squealed out, "Oh sweetheart, welcome home!"

The shocked looks intensified at Esme's response to me. Carlisle looked at me with concerned eyes and walked towards us.

Then, turning to his wife, he softly said, "Esme, I see the resemblance too, but it can't be who you think my dear, as much as you want it to be her. This is Marie, Renesmee's mother."

I smiled at Carlisle and then the whole group. I took a few steps, into the center of the group, never letting Esme go. Alice joined me, grabbing me on the other side.

Finally, after looking into all their faces, I said, "Ness, would you tell them your full name and the reason behind it? I think they would find it interesting."

Ness smiled at me and then said, "Sure, Mom. You know my first name is Renesmee. It is both of my grandmother's first names put together. My middle name is Carlie. It is both of my grandfather's names put together. My full name is Renesmee Carlie Masen Swan Cullen."

A huge smile spread across my daughter's face as she watched her family's reactions. Carlisle was the first one to break the silence by whispering my name.

I threw my arms around him and whispered, "Hi," into his ears.

As I broke Carlisle's grasp, I saw Jasper out of my peripheral vision. He was completely overwhelmed. I could see the intense battle going on in his face. Quickly, I moved towards him and wrapped my arms around him. After a moment of shock, Jasper returned the gesture. It was the first time Jasper did not have to hold back around me and I was thrilled to be able to show him the brotherly affection I felt.

Finally, he choked out, "Bella, I'm –I'm so sorry."

I stopped him immediately and saw Alice beaming out of the corner of my left eye. Jasper, after all this time, still felt guilty for what had happened. He felt that Edward leaving me was his fault. I knew better. Edward would have found a reason eventually even if Jasper hadn't tried to have me for dinner. I wasn't about to let a family member carry this kind of guilt around if I could do anything about it.

I hugged my brother back fiercely and said, "Jazz, none of this is your fault. Edward is just an idiot. I love him with all my heart but he would have left one way or another. He would have found another reason to leave eventually. Once it came to his attention that I was in so much danger, he would have left. Don't you dare blame yourself for your idiot brother's stupidity. I am just glad to finally be able to hug my brother."

I pulled back slightly and saw a huge smile spread across Jasper's face.

Suddenly from behind, I felt someone pull me out of Jasper's arms and throw me in the air. I growled slightly until I realized that Emmett was the one who had grabbed me.

Emmett crushed me against him with all his might and fiercely said, "Welcome back, little sis. I've missed you. Seriously, this family has been completely boring without you around. Welcome home."

I laughed, hugged him back and said, "Em, I've missed you too. I can't remember the last time someone teased me. I thought I was going to go nuts. It's good to be home."

Suddenly, the extremely hot hands of a werewolf replaced Emmett's cold ones. I felt a growl building up in my throat but then I looked at his face and I saw Jacob Black staring back at me with a huge smile.

I giggled and said, "I missed you too – dog."

Jake laughed and so did the rest of the wolves.

Jake grinned from ear to ear and said, "Well _mom_, it's good to see you too – even if you are a leech."

I laughed uncontrollably. Jacob was calling me mom? This was really over the top. Suddenly, I felt another pair of hot arms embrace us both.

Ness was hugging us both and said, "Well at least I know you two won't kill each other."

After a few seconds, I couldn't take it anymore and said, "Jake, you really do stink, I need some air."

Jake's nose wrinkled up and said, "Yah, seriously, Mom, you reek too. I'm letting go now."

Ness laughed and showed me an image from her head. Well, she was right; she was not going to ever have to worry about her husband crushing on her mom now that his nose burned when I came within ten feet of him. I joined in on her laughter and gave her a quick squeeze.

Then, I felt someone lightly tap me on the shoulder. I turned my gaze to see Rosalie looking back at me. I slowly released my hold on Renesmee and turned to face Rose completely. The look in her face was one of total agony. Something was killing Rose about my reappearance. Then suddenly, I felt two ice-cold arms wrap around me with our speed and it took me a moment to realize that Rose was the one grabbing me now. I felt her body shaking against me and I realized that she was crying. What was going on with her?

Finally, she composed herself and brokenly said, "Bella, I am so sorry you had to go through everything alone. It's all my fault. Tanya –Tanya did call the house to let Edward know you were there. I told Tanya that he was in South America chasing Victoria but I-" I stopped Rose and said, "That's why Kate put it that way." Rose's head hung in shame. After a moment she continued, "I'm so sorry Bella. If –if I had just told someone to come, none of this would have happened. Oh, Bella, I am so very sorry. If I had known, I would never have done this to you. I was so horrible to you and I caused you so much pain. I'm so sorry."

Then Rose began to shake again. I stood there in shock. The conversation that Tanya and Eleazar had ended because they had decided to call the Cullens, however Kate had no idea that Tanya had called them. She had just heard from Tanya that Edward was chasing some girl around South America. I had left for no reason at all. I sobbed in Rose's arms for a few minutes. Then I forced myself into control and looked at her. The shame and guilt was evident in her eyes. I realized that so many things could have changed what had happened but then some of the benefits would not be in place. The Volturi would have still come after us and I would not have been in a position to protect them. It would have meant the end of the Cullens. This was the only way that everything was going to be okay.

Finally, I took a deep, calming breath and said, "Rose, stop feeling guilty. I understand how you feel and why, but you need to understand something. If you had not done things exactly the way you had done them, what do you think would have happened when the Volturi came? Right now Edward, Alice, Jasper, Nessie, and I would have been members of the guard and no one would be there to stop the former council."

Suddenly, all the faces were looking at me in shock. Apparently, the news of what had happened in Volterra had not reached them.

I smiled slightly and said, "I guess you don't know what's happened. Marcus is the only original member of the council remaining. Aro and Caius are dead. When we returned to Volterra, we confronted them. I had to kill Chelsea immediately to keep them from stopping us. Once I killed her, Marcus was able to separate himself from the other two. Aro admitted to killing Didyme-"

At this, I heard Carlisle gasp in shock. He knew that Marcus had lost his mate long ago and he knew the magnitude of my statement. He had known Aro had a sister.

At a volume level that only we could hear, he said, "I remember Didyme. She was sweet and Marcus adored her. I have only seen love like theirs repeated once in my lifetime. Aro loved his sister dearly, but I could see the separation from the council beginning to happen. It was the reason I left Volterra. I did not want to be there when Marcus attempted to leave. When I heard about Didyme's death, I never thought that her own brother would be the cause. I was shocked when I found out that Marcus had agreed to stay on, until I heard about the most recent acquisition to the guard, Chelsea."

I looked at Carlisle for a moment before I continued my story, "Marcus killed Aro, Carlisle. He was furious when he found out the truth. Then Jane and Alec took out Caius. He was just as cold and cruel as Aro had been, Aro was just better at hiding it. Marcus agreed to remain on the council as long as two others were appointed. They wanted me to do it, but I refused. Jane and Alec are now the other two leaders of the Volturi."

Everyone looked at me in shock.

Finally, Jasper said gravely, "Are you sure they are good choices Bella?"

I looked at him with equal gravity and sincerity and said, "Jasper, I don't know what kind of dealings you have had with them, but they are the ones who were at the core of the conspiracy to save your family. They were my dearest and truest friends while I was part of the guard. They looked out for and protected me in every way they could. I do not know all their crimes of the past, but I know their hearts. They are worthy of their current position."

Everyone stood there in stunned silence. I could tell they were all attempting to process all the new information they had been given. Occasionally, someone would break their reverie and wrap their arms around me in a quick embrace.

Finally, after a few agonizing minutes of this immobile silence, I took a deep breath and rushed out in excitement, "We are drawing unneeded attention. There is a strange woman over there staring at us quite oddly and I need to go home. Edward is waiting for me and I think that he and I have waited long enough, don't you?"

As I finished my statement, a huge smile broke out over my face. Slowly I felt all their faces focus in on mine and as they did, they broke out into equally thrilled smiles.

Rose finally quipped, "Finally, my brother can stop brooding and stop driving us insane!"

I laughed and nodded, and then we all quickly moved out to the car.

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**Okay I'm evil I know… but I promise that next chapter is the Edward and Bella chapter!**

**Please review… please?**


	22. Chapter 22 Love

**A/N: Here we go… the reunion you have all been waiting for :) Enjoy :D**

Chapter 22 - Love at Long Last

When we reached the parking garage, there were four cars waiting for us. Edward's Volvo, now one of the oldest cars the Cullens owned, stood out prominently among them. I looked at it in surprise. This car was far too old to be of any worth to Edward anymore. I looked at my family for an explanation.

Quietly, Alice said, "He couldn't bear to part with it. It reminded him too strongly of you, and it was the only thing that retained your scent after all these years."

I looked at Alice in shock. He loved me so much that he could not part with a car because of its sentimental value? I really had underestimated him.

Before I could start berating myself in my head, however, Alice said, "Bella, he loves you. You love him. Stop beating yourself up, get in the Volvo and drive to the house. He's there. He has no idea why we all suddenly had to go shopping together. Go tell him you love him."

I looked at Alice and whispered. "You didn't tell him?"

She looked at me sweetly, with powerful emotion and said, "Bella, I could have told him, but I knew that you both needed to do this your way. You needed to take his pain away. Now stop stalling, girl, and go throw your arms around him."

I needed no further prompting. I hugged my family as fast as I could and then jumped into the familiar silver Volvo and sped out of the parking garage towards my Edward at long last.

It took me over an hour to reach the house. I knew it immediately. Every inch of it screamed Cullen. Esme must have designed this herself from scratch. As I walked towards the house, I suddenly heard two voices inside arguing. It was Edward and Tanya. I stormed towards the house. I was not about to let that little strawberry blond succubus get her claws into Edward now. As I reached the door, I froze in my tracks at Tanya's words.

She said, "Edward, she's gone for good. I know you don't love me the way you loved her, but Edward, hasn't it been long enough? We are meant to be together. I was meant to be your mate. I was meant to drive every thought of her from your mind. Edward, won't you finally realize this?"

I looked through the window. I could see them both standing in the living room, facing each other. I knew I would not be able to get the door open fast enough to stop his response.

I sucked in a deep breath as Edward said, "Tanya, I –I love her. I know she loves me still. Someday she will figure that out. If our daughter is unsuccessful, then I will try again. I love her, Tanya. Nothing will ever change that. She is my life, my everything, my reason for existence. Tanya, I will not discuss this with you again. I'm sorry to hurt you, but I love her."

At that, Edward sighed and sunk down into the couch covering his eyes. Tanya glanced towards the door and saw me looking through the window. I threw my shield around her so that Edward would not be alerted to my presence and waited for her to approach me.

Silently, she moved across the room and opened the front door. Tanya put a finger over her lips and then closed the door behind her. She looked at me with agony and I think I saw the moment when her heart shattered. She really did love Edward, despite all her shallowness.

I hugged her and whispered in her ear, "Tanya, he won't hurt anymore. I love him and I always have. Take some peace in the fact that he's finally going to be happy."

She looked at me, nodded, and then ran out into the night. I took a moment to compose myself and then slowly and silently opened the door.

I walked into the house and marveled at how much it reminded me of the home in Forks. Everything seemed so familiar. It felt like home. I moved as silently as I could across the floor, until I was standing opposite from Edward. The pain he was feeling was evident all over his body. His face was in his hands. His body was shaking from the tears that would never leave his eyes. Then, in a broken whisper, he called out my name. I couldn't take it anymore. I had to hold him, comfort him. Silently, I wrapped my arms around him, enveloping him in tight hug.

The grief continued to shake his body and without uncovering his eyes, he said, "Tanya, I'm sorry that I can't- "

He began to take in a breath. Suddenly, he stopped and gasped. Slowly, and with some fear, he lowered his hands from his face, then his head tilted up and his perfect golden eyes burned into mine.

Instantly, I was wrapped in Edward's arms. He held me against him tightly and repeated my name and that he loved me over and over again. After a few moments he calmed down to some extent and he looked up at me with cautious hope evident in his eyes.

As his eyes burned their query into mine, he said, "Bella I-"

I looked at him and put my fingertips over his mouth, cutting him off. At my touch, his eyes looked at me wildly. Without a sound, Edward reverently kissed my fingertips and stared at me with wide questioning eyes.

I took a few breaths to steady myself and finally, with obvious triumph in my voice, said tenderly, "Edward, I love you."

He looked at me without understanding for a moment. Then suddenly his eyes lit up and were shining, as I had never seen before. The intensity of unspoken emotion was astounding. I stopped breathing and stared back into his perfect topaz eyes for the longest time.

Edward finally broke the silence and whispered, "Are you really here saying you love me?"

My face broke out into a huge smile and I said, "Yes, love."

Edward blinked his eyes furiously and then shook his head a few times as if he was trying to wake up from a dream.

I laughed at him and said, "Love, you're a vampire. We don't sleep, you're awake and you're not imagining things. I'm here and I love you."

He looked at me with conflict raging in his eyes for a few moments. Then his face slowly began to blossom into my favorite crooked smile and his eyes burned into mine with more intensity than I could ever remember seeing from him.

He took a few shaky breaths as his smile was gradually replaced with a very serious expression, finally saying, "Bella, my beautiful Bella, I love you. My life hasn't been a life without you, love. I am so sorry for everything I put you through. I know now that it was wrong and my only defense is that I thought it was the best way to truly love you. Bella, I'm- "

I looked at him fiercely and before he went any further, I crushed my lips into his. He sat there unresponsive for a split second and then he was wrapping his arms around me tightly and kissing me back with every ounce of passion and love he could find. I knew that the apologies and conversations would need to happen soon, but in this moment all I wanted was my Edward showing me how much he loved me and the chance for me to do the same.

Without breaking our kiss, suddenly I was in Edward's arms and he was standing up. Then just as quickly, I could feel us moving through the house and up the stairs into a room. I opened my eyes briefly to realize that we were in what could only be his room due to the large amount of music it contained. However, that was only thing that made the room familiar. Everything else was almost opposite of his room in the house in Forks. Edward finally broke the kiss and put his hand on my face, adjusting my head slightly so I was looking directly into his eyes. His eyes were shining and burning all at the same time, overflowing with all the emotion he was feeling.

After a moment, Edward mumbled, "Bella, I love you so much, but after everything I've put you through, how can you still love me?"

I looked at him and saw the pain that was evident on his face. I knew we had to talk. I had to at least tell him that I did not blame him.

Quickly I said, "Edward, there is so much to say. So much we have to talk about. I don't want to spend these first few hours talking through all of that. I know we need to and I want to, but I need a few hours just being with you. That said, I know that you need to know the answer to your question now, because you won't let yourself go until you do."

I smiled sweetly at him as he threw me a slight grin. I really did know him and no amount of time or distance had changed that.

I smiled back at him and continued, "Edward, I know and understand how you felt and why you left. I can see how you could have come to that conclusion. I know that your motives were pure and full of love for me. I know now that it killed you to leave me and now that I have lived as a vampire for some time, I see how easy it can be to make decisions for the humans around you, even if you care for them. If you hadn't left, things would have been much easier for us. You would have had a chance to watch our daughter grow up into the young woman that she is and our lives would have been so much better for a while. However, the Volturi still would have come for us. There would have been no way to stop them and we would have lost our lives or been conscripted into the guard. Now, the Volturi are again a force for good in the world. Aro and Caius are gone forever and the new council is one to respect instead of fear. It cost us over a decade and it is going to take time to rebuild our relationship, however so much good came out of the pain we went through. So many others will benefit from our pain, Edward. Be happy, love. We are together and can finally love each other at long last, for forever."

Edward looked at me with his shining eyes for quite a while, fixed to the spot like a statue.

Then, he slowly said, "I know you are right, love. I just wish I could take all the pain away that I caused you. I never meant to hurt you, love. I'm so sorry, Bella, and if it takes me the rest of eternity to make up for what I've done, I will gladly spend the rest of our existence making it up to you and showing you how much I love you."

I threw my arms around him and said, "Edward, stop blaming yourself and kiss me."

Edward gave me a half smile full of mischief, as he threw his arms around me and pushed his lips against mine.

Slowly, the rest of the world seemed to melt away and we were just Edward and Bella kissing each other and showing each other how much we loved each other. However it was strange that I did not have to stop kissing Edward to breathe or because I got tired. This would make other activities definitely more interesting. With that thought, my mind started to play back the night before my eighteenth birthday and my body started to respond to the feelings that accompanied those memories. Edward pulled back from me with a gasp and I smiled at him with a mischievous grin. All of the sudden all I wanted was Edward. I wasn't a newborn anymore, but this was truly the first time I had experienced love and lust as a vampire. The emotional and physical responses were overwhelming. Edward just looked at me, frozen again in place while I tried to sort out what I was feeling. However, after a quick flash of understanding moved across Edward's face, his lips were abruptly and hungrily on mine. I kissed him back with just as much energy. As I sat in Edward's lap and kissed him, I felt something and it took me a moment to register that Edward was craving me just as much as I needed him. I gasped and with extreme speed adjusted my position on his lap so that I was now straddling him. As my movement registered with Edward, he deepened and intensified the kiss. Then I felt his tongue trace my lower lip and push slightly against it, clearly wanting me to open my mouth for him. Finally, we could kiss the way we were meant to. No breakable body to hold us back. I slowly opened my mouth for him and our tongues began to dance together, which was increasing my desire for him exponentially. The electricity that was being created between our bodies was so intense it was like we were both humming from an electrical current being passed between us.

Somehow, we moved from the couch to the thick plush gray carpet that covered the floor Edward was crushed down on top of me, no longer having to worry about hurting me. My body went into overdrive and I was losing all sense of control or reason. The animalistic nature that came with being a vampire was quickly taking over. Before I lost control completely, I needed to let Edward know that I wanted him just as badly as he wanted me. I did not want him to feel guilt for what I knew was about to happen. I struggled for a moment, trying to break our kiss until Edward realized what I wanted and pushed up and away from me slightly.

Edward frowned, looked down at me quizzically as I hastily said, "Edward, I need you to know something."

Edward looked at me and said with obvious concern, "Yes, love?"

I looked at him with an expression that I knew would be tender but full of desire and said, "Edward, I love you and I need you. Now."

A flash of shock passed across Edward's face before his eyes began to burn and smolder into mine. He simply nodded and broke out with my favorite smile before eagerly capturing my lips with his own again.

Just as our tongues met, a ringing doorbell rudely interrupted us. Edward and I looked into each other's eyes for a moment and I could see that we both wanted to ignore it. However, just as we were ready to blow it off, Edward's phone began to buzz in his pocket. Instinctually he pulled it out and groaned Alice's name before he answered it. I was ready to kill my pixie of a sister. I was so busy getting mad at her that I completely missed the phone call and only refocused on Edward when I heard the phone click shut. Instead of the look of extreme annoyance that I expected to be plastered all over his face, Edward was smiling like a little kid on Christmas morning and I could swear that I heard him faintly giggling before he gently put me on the floor and raced down the stairs at top speed to answer the door. I looked at him with confusion and then pulled myself off the floor to find out what he was so excited about. Just as I reached the bottom of the stairs, two humans walked in carrying a huge mattress. Moving as fast as they could, they took it straight up the stairs and into Edward's room.

Edward moved just slightly faster than human speed and whispered in my ear, "Alice ordered a bed for us. She, umm – saw that we would need one."

I swear if Edward could have blushed, he would have turned bright red. I laughed, threw my arms around Edward and pulled myself into him.

Once my head was right by his ear, I said in the softest voice possible, "Once they are gone, we are so going to break that bed in."

Edward gasped in shock and pulled me far enough away to look into my face.

He looked into my eyes and said softly, "I love you, Bella, but you'll be the death of me."

Then he kissed me sweetly before he turned his attention back to the men who were delivering and setting up our new bed.

Once the men had all the pieces into the room, Edward asked how long the assembly process would take. When they told us three hours, we both groaned so quietly that the humans had no chance of hearing us. Edward took my hand and wordlessly led me downstairs to the huge flat panel TV in the living room. Edward walked over to the ridiculous movie collection that the Cullens had amassed over the years and looked thoughtfully for a moment before removing three movies from various places on the shelves. Then, he moved quickly over to me and held them up for me to choose one. I looked at them and tried to figure out which one Edward wouldn't mind watching. However, I quickly realized that he had picked out three of my favorite movies from before I was turned. I smiled at him sweetly and pointed to one of them. Edward flashed my favorite grin and quickly put the movie in. After he got everything set up, he settled on the couch next to me and we began to watch.

Edward knew what he was doing. There were only a few movies that would have distracted me from the beautiful perfection sitting next to me. Even so, knowing that we would soon be christening our new bed was making it difficult to focus on the Jane Austen work that was playing on the screen in front of us. Finally, just as the film reached its ending, the men came into the living room and finished their business with Edward, who left me on the couch to finish the movie. I had not seen this one since I was changed and so was looking at it with new eyes. Through my perfect vision, the movie lost some of the appeal it held for me since I could see every small flaw. It was still a good film, even though I knew my vampiric imagination could do a better job, it was still very enjoyable. When the movie was about ten minutes from its conclusion, I heard the truck pull away from the house. Edward ran at our speed to the couch and hit the pause button on the movie. Instantly I was ready to jump Edward, although I had a feeling that Esme would not appreciate her couch retaining those kinds of smells.

Edward looked at me with sparkling eyes and said, "Love, I want to get the room put together. Finish your movie and when you are done join me upstairs, but not until your movie is done."

I threw a playful scowl at him and almost instantly restarted my movie. I was not going to wait a second longer for him than I had to. As the movie drew to its conclusion, I became more and more frustrated. The instant the credits began to play I turned off the TV and rushed up the stairs to my Edward.

***Evil laugh* **

**I know… the most evil cliffie… EVER ;) **

**I hope this lived up to expectations!**

**You know there is lemony goodness in the next chapter :D**

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	23. Chapter 23 No Lamb

**A/N: It is currently well past midnight but I decided that this chapter needed some major edits before I put it up.  
**

Chapter 23 - No Longer a Lamb

I threw open the bedroom door to see Edward sitting in the middle of the bed looking through an art book appearing to be patiently passing the time. However, the moment I entered the room the book was on the floor and he was looking at me with obvious desire. I looked at him and grinned. We needed this to happen now before all the serious and difficult conversations happened. We needed to show each other how much we still loved each other before we started dealing with the issues. I threw myself in one leap across the room into Edward's waiting arms. The force of my actions knocked Edward backwards and just like that, I was lying on top of him looking into his gorgeous topaz eyes, which were burning back at me with obvious love and lust.

We spent the whole night wrapped up in each other, breaking in our new bed over and over again. I was going to have to remember to thank Alice for ordering a bed for us, however I wondered what would have happened had Alice not ordered the bed. Just as I was about to mention it to Edward my phone started vibrating across the bed stand. I groaned and twisted around in Edward's arms to retrieve it. I picked up the phone and saw that it was Alice so I answered.

Shrilly, into my ear, I heard Alice squeak, "Bella don't you dare mention that to Edward. I don't want to have to burn my sheets when we get back to the house. Oh Crap! Edward heard that! Leave my bed alone you two!"

I giggled and Alice growled at me through the phone.

I giggled again and said, "Such a scary little pixie."

She shot back, "If you mess up my bed I will be. Stay in your room and keep the carnage limited. The house is going to reek as it is, I would like to keep the stink out of my room."

If I could have blushed, I would have been bright red. This is what I get for having a best friend who can see the future. As I continued to talk to Alice, I flipped over to face Edward. His face was priceless. His eyes were dancing with laughter and he started mouthing at me that we should go mess up his sister's bed, purely to irritate her.

Suddenly Alice screamed at the top of her lungs, "Don't you dare Edward Cullen! I will rip you to pieces if you try."

Edward laughed loudly and then grabbed the phone from me and said with obvious amusement, "Scary little pixie aren't you?"

Alice took a deep breath, which I could hear, even though Edward now had the phone.

Then she said, with satisfaction in her voice, "If I get a vision of you two in my bed, I will come home with the whole family. So unless you want your alone time to end early, stay in your room you two."

Then with a slight click, the phone went dead. I hung it up and turned my attention back to Edward.

We spent a full day in bed together before we finally decided to get up and spend some time talking. Everything was beginning to get awkward. There was so much to say and it was beginning to get in the way of our time together. We were both being too careful about what we were saying and it was time to start dealing with putting our relationship back together.

With a large lamenting sigh, I disentangled myself from Edward's arms and climbed out of bed. Then I went to the closet and went searching for clothes. Alice had thoughtfully stocked the closet for me, which she had informed me of over the phone and I searched until I found some jeans and a t-shirt.

I turned, Edward laughed and said, "Alice would be disappointed. Your fashion sense hasn't improved one bit since you were human."

For a moment, something darkened his expression and he wrapped his arms around me.

I looked at him and said, "Edward, we need to sit down and talk this out, otherwise we will spend eternity walking on eggshells around each other, carefully judging every word we say."

Edward looked at me apologetically and then nodded. In no time at all, he was dressed and took my hand to lead me downstairs.

As soon as we were seated comfortably in the love seat by his piano, Edward looked deeply into my eyes and said, "Bella, I love you. I know there is a lot of healing that needs to happen here. I need to start by apologizing for leaving the way I did, for leaving at all and explain myself as best I can. Bella, when Jasper went after you and you got hurt so badly that you were unconscious, I didn't know what to do. I had just put your life in jeopardy again and this time it was because of my brother and I that you got hurt. Do you remember why you were so badly injured?"

Edward looked at me expectantly. I looked at him sadly and shook my head. I had no memory past Jasper launching at me.

Edward took a deep breath and said, "Bella, I launched myself between the two of you and in the process knocked you to the ground, along with all the glass and crystal on the piano. You had bleeding cuts all over your body. You were out almost instantly, only having time to call out my name in fear before the darkness claimed you. In that moment, I realized that I was responsible for your injuries and that you were afraid of me. I knew you would lie to me later, but I heard the fear in your voice. I knew the only thing that could cause that was you being afraid of me."

I gasped and Edward looked up at me in surprise. As he spoke, the memories came back to me with some difficultly. This was one of the clearest human memories that I had. I was not afraid of Edward. I saw Jasper trying to bite Edward and I was afraid for him. That was why I had cried out his name. Edward looked like he was about to continue, but this was too important to let go by, so I put my hand over his mouth. Being the gentleman that he is, he stopped and looked at me quizzically.

Slowly I took a deep breath and said, "Edward, while you spoke, I finally remembered that night completely. I was afraid, but not of what you think. Edward I called out to you in fear, not because I was afraid of you but because I was afraid for you."

Edward looked at me with even deeper confusion.

I hurriedly said, "Edward, I saw Jasper trying to attack you so that he could get to me. I was afraid that he would kill you. I knew that Jasper was a fighter and he was the only one who had a chance of really hurting you. I was afraid I was going to lose you."

Edward looked at me in total shock. I could tell this was the furthest thing from what he was expecting me to say. He sat there like a statue, perfectly still and motionless, looking like the most perfect creation of a skilled master sculptor for a few minutes.

Finally, he broke his stillness and said in awe, "You are telling the truth, aren't you?"

I looked at him incredulously and said, "Edward, of course I am. Why would I do otherwise? Especially now? Too many little things got in our way and now that I've finally got you back, do you honestly think I am going to let something as stupid as a lie get in our way?"

Edward looked back at me sheepishly and shook his head at me. I looked at him patiently, waiting for him to continue his previous train of thought.

Finally, Edward spoke up and said, "Bella, I knew I had to do something. I thought you were afraid of me. I was also horrified that I had been the one to cause you such serious injury after my brother tried to attack you. It was too much for me to handle. The Volturi were in the area at the time and were proving to be a real threat as well. I needed to protect you from harm. That was the only thing that made me strong enough to come up with my plan to leave. I needed you to be safe, even more than I needed you with me and you were obviously not safe with me around. It almost killed me when I had to take the ring off your finger, but I did it just before Charlie walked into the room. The moment Charlie left your side to find Carlisle, I snuck back in and said goodbye to you. I told you every ounce of truth that I knew I would have to cover up and lie about when I sent you that film. I told you that I loved you more than my own happiness, more than my own life, and that you would not die because of me. I told you to be happy and safe and that I would always love you. I kissed you and just as I turned to walk out of the room you began to stir and mumble, 'Edward, come back to me.' I knew that somewhere inside you, you would know I loved you always and with that thought I ran from the hospital."

Edward paused for a moment and I took the chance to wrap myself in his arms. I needed to be near him. I could see the pain evident all over his face. He needed to know how much I loved and needed him. Edward paused for a split second before he wrapped his arms tightly around me. Even though he was only retelling these events, they were so painful for him that he needed me in his arms. If I hadn't put myself there, he would have grabbed me and held me while he relayed his story to me, I was sure of it. I could only imagine the pain that had been there for him when he left me in that hospital. I buried my head in his shoulder until he felt like he could continue.

After a few moments, Edward cupped his hand around my jaw and gently tilted my head up so I was looking into his eyes. He was ready to continue his story.

Edward then continued to tell me of his life without me. I had seen so much of this through Nessie's gift however, it took on a completely different dimension hearing Edward talk about how much pain he was in. As he talked, I could sense him becoming uncomfortable and reluctant.

Finally, not being able to take it anymore, I said, "Edward, what is it? I can tell you are holding something back or that something is bothering you. Explain."

Edward looked at me in agony and said, "Bella, I did not share this with Nessie and I am afraid of how you will react when I tell you about this. I know you need to hear it and we need to clear the air before we can truly be together, but I know that the next thing I need to tell you will hurt you to the point where you may run away from me, which I would deserve entirely. I just selfishly do not want to lose you again, not after finally having you back in my life Bella. You are the only one I have ever loved, but there is something I need to tell you."

Edward looked at me with an expression of pure agony. Whatever was bothering him was going to be extremely difficult to take.

I took a few deep and calming breathes and finally said, "Alright Edward, tell me what you need to."

Edward nodded slowly and gravely at me, the look of agony and pain etching deeper into his face.

Finally, he said brokenly, "Bella, I thought you were dead. I thought I had lost you forever. It does not excuse my actions however; I thought you should know that before I tell you this. I never would have done what I did if I had known you were alive. When Alice could no longer see you, we thought you had died. Eleazar somewhat confirmed that when he told us that he had given you details on the Volturi. We thought you had gone to Italy and had asked for death. I thought they had killed you and your unborn baby. When you left that book in Denali, we thought that you were pregnant with someone else's child, especially after your confrontation with Kate. After three years, my family started pushing me to date. They all set me up in one way or another and I went out with other girls. After about six months, Tanya and the rest of the Denali clan visited us. I was miserable and out of desperation, I started seeing Tanya to distract myself from my grief. We were not together long, and we never slept together. I dumped Tanya once I was clear headed enough to realize that I was just using her to distract me from the pain of losing you and that I did not care for her at all. Ever since then Tanya has pursued me relentlessly. When you showed up here yesterday, you were seeing yet another attempt by Tanya to get me back. I am so sorry Bella, I never should have I-"

Edward suddenly stopped and put his head in his hands, unable to say anymore.

In shock, I stood up. Edward looked at me with resigned agony. He thought he knew what my reaction was going to be. I had to get out for a while and sort through this on my own, but I could not let him think that I was leaving for good.

Finally, I choked out, "Edward, I need to be alone for a while. I need some time to think."

With that, I turned around and ran out of the house with vampire speed.

I ran through the trees quickly into the snow-laden woods. It was deep in the heart of winter now and dazzling white powder covered everything with a soft white blanket. As my thoughts caught up with my feet, I collapsed into the snow and allowed it to bury me into a soft damp cocoon. As I lay in the snow, I allowed my thoughts to consume me. Edward had dated Tanya and others. How was I supposed to handle that? He had said that they had never slept together, but how far had it gone exactly? Edward was the only person I had ever dated and I could not imagine being with anyone else, even when my dear friend Alec wanted to be with me, I said no and refused to love anyone else. I did not understand how he could do any differently.

After what seemed like an eternity, I felt something else walking on the snow near me. I quickly unburied myself until I was looking up at Jasper.

I looked at him and harshly spat out, "How did you find me?"

Almost instantly, I regretted my tone and I said, "Sorry, Jazz, I'm just upset. Edward told me about Tanya."

Jazz looked at me with deep regret and said, "It's okay, Bella, you have every right to be upset at me about the Tanya thing."

I looked at him quizzically and he gasped. Suddenly his phone began to buzz and he looked quickly at it.

After a moment he said, "Text message from Alice. She told me that Edward had laid all the blame on himself for the Tanya situation. I am here to remedy that apparently."

Quickly Jazz spat out, far too fast for a human to understand, "Bella, we are all partially to blame for Tanya. Each of us in our own ways pushed Edward towards finding someone else. In our defense, we thought you were dead. He went out on dates which we all encouraged. Well, we all encouraged it, except for Alice. Alice knew that it would end badly, although she could not see exactly why. They all pushed it, but I basically forced it on Edward. I used my ability to force feelings of adoration and affection for Tanya. I also blocked my mind from Edward completely and lied to him. I also threw tons of lust at him continually during all his dates with Tanya. While he struggled with it, he never gave in to her or my meddling with his emotions. Eventually, he overpowered my influence completely and dumped Tanya. I confessed everything to him later and he was furious with me. Ever since Tanya has relentlessly pursued him. It is all my fault Bella, not Edward's. He doesn't care about Tanya at all, in fact, he finds her boorish and not the least bit appealing. I'm so sorry Bella. I never should have done it. I was trying to help my brother, but it was wrong."

Jasper stood before me silently while I wrestled with all of it in my mind. Edward must have been so strong to resist Jazz's influence, and yet he still blamed himself for the whole thing. I knew I was going to need a bit longer to reconcile the idea of Edward dating or he and Tanya together, but I was lighter knowing now that it was not really his fault. I finally broke my revere and threw my arms around Jasper.

Hugging my brother tightly, I said, "Jazz, I know you did it out of love for Edward. I know that your motivations were pure. Edward and I had so many things get in our way. I am not about to allow something as small as an ex- girlfriend get in my way. Jazz, you are my brother and I love you like a brother. Stop blaming yourself once and for all, please!"

Jazz looked at me hard for the longest moment and finally smiled.

We sat there in the snow talking for a long time, finally able to relate as siblings should. I knew that during my human life our separation had been a necessary one, but now that I was a vampire and back with my family for good, I was going to make up for lost time.

We sat for quite a while talking, until Jasper said, "Bella, Alice and I will be leaving for a while. We are seriously concerned about some reports we have heard about Maria creating a huge newborn army. We are going to South America for a while, but as soon as we get back, I expect to have some time to truly get to know my little sister. "

I gave Jazz a huge smile and excitedly said, "Jazz, there is no need for you to go to South America. I need to get Ness to show you something."

Jasper nodded at me with an expression of confusion clearly spread across his scared face. Just as I began to dial, I heard someone run into the clearing. I paused and turned to find Ness looking at me with an odd expression on her face.

In explanation she said, "Aunt Alice sent me."

Jasper and I looked at each other and laughed calling her an annoying psychic pixie between giggling spurts.

Finally, I caught the breath I didn't really need, and said, "Ness, I need to you help me share a memory with your Uncle Jasper here."

Ness looked at me with confusion for a moment and then understanding dawned on her face with an accompanying smile. She nodded with pleasure and linked between Jasper and I. Surprisingly it worked and I threw my thoughts of Maria's death at Jasper.

After Ness and I disconnected, Jazz stood there in silence for the longest time like a vampire statue.

After a few minutes, Alice ran into the clearing beaming at me and said, "Bella, get your vampire butt back to the house. Edward is beginning to think you left him. Jazz is thankful for what you did and only regrets that he was not the one to off Maria personally. Now get your butt back to Edward. We can't hunt forever you know."

I nodded at Alice and hugged Ness before running back through the woods towards our home.

**Alright, let me know what you think… I could use some serious feedback on this chapter please :) Reviews make me smile in the middle of class and then my kids think I'm plotting… it's funny… (I check between groups… really) review and make my students nervous ;) **


	24. Chapter 24 Forgiveness and Love

**A/N: Okay this is a short chapter… I am actually happy with it the way that it is… and no.. it's not the end…. **

Chapter 24 - Forgiveness and Love

I ran up to the house, not stopping to take in its beauty, headed only for Edward, not caring about anything else. I quickly ran up the stairs to Edward's room and paused at the door to hear voices shouting animatedly. I threw the door open to find Edward and Tanya screaming at each other. Tanya looked at me with anger and ran from the room.

I looked at Edward and he said slowly, "Tanya does not take rejection well."

I nodded and turned from the room.

I heard Edward gasp behind me and I said without turning, "I will be right back, love. I need to take care of this once and for all. I love you, Edward Cullen."

Running down the stairs, I finally caught up with her, pushed her roughly to the ground, and started screaming at her, "How could you come here and continue to pursue him? He does not love you or want you like that, Tanya. Stop torturing him. He does not like to hurt people. You need to move on. Hasn't he been through enough? Haven't I been through enough?"

I looked at her with fury plain on my face.

She looked at me with a blank mask on her face and woodenly said, "I'll leave him alone Bella."

Then she turned and ran from the house. As soon as the door closed, I felt two arms wrap themselves around me and turn me gently.

I whipped around to find myself looking into the loving face of my Edward. With a slight chuckle he said, "Does this mean you forgive me, Bella?"

I laughed and said, "Edward, in all honestly, if you had really lost me, I would have wanted you to move on. I would have wanted you to be happy and have a life. I am glad you were honest with me. I just needed some time to deal with it. I am sorry I was gone for so long. By the way, Jasper told me the whole story. I really don't blame you with that idiot messing with your emotions. It wasn't fair to you or to Tanya, but I understand why he did it."

Edward tried to stop me so he could speak, a look of pain and guilt evident on his face.

Before he could say anything, however, I hurriedly stated, "And don't you dare blame yourself, Edward Anthony Masen Cullen."

Then I threw my arms around him and started kissing him with as much energy as I could muster, cutting off whatever words of guilt he was trying to say.

Hours later, after allowing ourselves to get carried away again, Edward and I sat cuddling in bed together just enjoying the feel of our bodies against each other when I knew it was time to pick up our honest conversation where we had left off.

I took a deep breath and said as jokingly as possible, "Edward, any other girlfriends I need to know about?"

Edward looked at me and then laughed for a moment before saying with extreme seriousness, "No, Bella, you are the one for me. Before Tanya, I went on a few dates, but never more than once. After the whole Tanya thing, I learned my lesson. There was never going to be anyone for me but you. I think my heart would not allow me to move on because something deep inside of me knew you were still alive and would not allow me to give up hope that someday I would find you love."

I snuggled into him and we continued to tell each other everything that had remained unsaid for so many years. There were laughs and tears and pain and heartache for both of us but it was all bearable because we were finally together, we truly loved each other and we knew nothing was going to separate us again. We were finally at the beginning of our happily forever after.

**Okay… just so everyone knows… there are still 9 more chapters to go :) However, posting is going to move a little slower for the next 3-4 weeks. I am a music teacher and concert season starts this week so I am not going to have as much time to spend on this. I plan to still get a chapter out a week just not 2 or 3.**

**Let me know what you think!**

**Reviews are my favorite things next to two week old peeps (I like it when they are chewy… any other weird people like me out there?)**


	25. Chapter 25 The Past Haunts

**A/N: I'm sorry for the wait… I do not like waiting to post as much as you guys don't like having to wait but I've had no time with all my concerts.**

**Thank you all for your reviews… I hit 200 with the last chapter :)**

**Some of you may not like what is about to happen but it was the plan all along…**

**Let me know what you think!**

Chapter 25- The Past Haunts

Two days later, we packed up the Alaska house and began the trek back to Forks. We were moving back to the house right outside Forks for a while, so Ness and Jacob could get married there without too many complications; it was also going to give Tanya the room she needed to get over Edward. I could not hide my relief that we were putting a lot of miles between Edward and Tanya. I trusted Edward completely, but I did not trust Tanya at all and I wanted him away from her.

I was thrilled that Ness and Jacob had decided to get married at the Cullens' house in Forks. I couldn't wait to go back home and introduce Charlie and Renee to their granddaughter. We had told Renee to be there that weekend for a homecoming. Renee was thrilled to find out that I was okay and that everything had turned out all right. She was furious at me for apparently running away with Edward when I found out that I was pregnant however, we knew things were going to take an interesting turn when we told her the truth. We had written to the council for their permission to inform Renee why I still looked like the teenager she had sent to Forks so many years ago. Jane and Alec gave their permission whole-heartedly as long as we got my mother to promise to keep the secret to keep our world safe. I was overjoyed at the idea of getting to keep my parents in my life and to allow them to know their granddaughter. As we drove Edward's old Volvo back to Forks, I sighed contentedly thinking about all our homecoming would bring.

Edward half-turned to me, asking with amusement, "What are you thinking, love?"

Without thinking, I pulled my shield down, not wanting to stop my thoughts to have to verbalize them to Edward. In the seat next to me, Edward gasped. I giggled as I realized that I had only done this to him once before in a hotel room in France. I definitely needed to do this to him more often.

Finally, after a few moments of him being stunned and only narrowly missing a few trees on the side of the road, Edward gasped out, "Bella, next time, some warning, love?"

I giggled and told him, through my thoughts, that next time I would give him some notice. Then I began to think about why it would be so strange for him. He was so used to hearing everyone else's thoughts.

Edward smiled at me and said, "When I hear your thoughts, they are almost all consuming. The second your shield went down I couldn't hear anyone else but you, love."

I laughed, thought at him that it was definitely a good thing to know and that it was something I could really use to my advantage. Then, I started sending him thoughts that were definitely more than R-rated about what I was going to do to him the second we arrived at the house in Forks. Edward started to breath heavily and I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. As I continued to send my racy thoughts to Edward I heard a very annoyed pixie speak quickly into the phone and let me know that she had booked a hotel room for us at the next turn off and that they expected us to stay for three days.

I began to question Alice, but she cut me off with a frustrated groan and hesitantly said, "Because it is going to take a minimum of three days before any of us can stand to be around you again! Now go!"

Edward's face lit up like a Christmas tree and he sped off towards the hotel.

Three wonderful days later, we reluctantly crawled back into Edward's Volvo. Soon we were confronted with the very familiar scenery of Forks so unchanged by the passing of time.

All the sudden Edward looked at me with a mischievous grin and said, "Bella, close your eyes, love. I have a surprise for you."

I grumbled, but complied reluctantly. Secretly, I had grown to love surprises, however I liked that Edward still thought I despised them. It was fun to mess with him on occasion, especially since I was the only one whose mind he could not access without permission. Edward took my hand and led me through trees that I could feel brushing against me occasionally.

Finally, he turned to me and said, "Love, I'm going to put you on my back so you don't knock down any more trees."

I laughed. I was not as clumsy as I had been as a human, however a bit of my klutziness had remained, but now instead of hurting myself, I hurt the things around me. Edward laughed as well. I heard a hint of another emotion in his voice. I thought it might be nervousness. I was suddenly very curious about where he was taking me.

Just as I was about to give in and peek, I felt Edward's phone buzz and heard him laugh as he said, "Bella don't you dare peek or Alice will tell me."

I grumbled and called her an annoying little pixie under my breath. I felt Edward shake with silent laughter as he ran faster through the forest.

Suddenly, Edward stopped and dropped me into tall thick grass. I felt the sun shining down, warming my skin. I knew exactly where we had to be. We were in our meadow. More than any other place in the world, this small, secluded spot felt like home to me. I blinked my eyes open and looked around me to see Edward smiling at me as he sparkled in the sun. I practically flew across the small space and threw myself into his arms. How he knew that I would want to come here before going anywhere else, I was not sure, but I was thrilled. As I held on tightly to Edward, the memory of the first time he brought me here flooded my mind, and I pulled down my shield quickly to share it with him. Edward's smile grew as he saw that important day through my frail, flawed human eyes, and looked at me in total adoration and love. Then my mind traveled to the last time he had known I was here with him, the day of my disastrous eighteenth birthday party. I also gave him that memory. I knew he really needed to see how much that day had meant to me. I needed him to understand how much his leaving me had truly hurt me, how deep my love was for him, and what he had taken away that day. Edward gasped after a few moments as the full force of my emotional memory hit him.

Eventually, with a sad and broken tone, Edward slowly said, "Bella, love, I had no idea. If I had known, I never would have been able to leave you. I am so very sorry, love. I wish I could turn back time and change all of it. I never should have left you, love. I know that now."

I turned to him and simply said, "Edward, I needed you to understand so that we never have to suffer like that again. I knew if I could finally show you my thoughts, you would understand the depth of my love for you, even then. I love you, Edward Cullen."

Edward smiled at me and crushed me against him, pushing his lips fiercely against mine.

Then, after a few moments, Edward smiled and said, "Love, we are here for a reason. I have something I need to take care of."

I looked at him in confusion and he darted away. I got comfortable in the grass lying down to look up at the sky. After a few moments, Edward's head suddenly blocked my view as he smiled down at me. Quickly and carefully with a speed only a vampire could handle, Edward was laying down on top of me. I smiled mischievously. This was definitely somewhere that we had not had sex yet and I was eager to break in our favorite place.

However before I was able to put my thoughts into action Edward chuckled and said, "Before we get too carried away, love, I would like you to close your eyes."

I smiled up at my Edward and my eyes flitted closed. Edward kissed both of my eyelids and my nose as he moved around slightly on top of me. Then Edward got up and pulled me to my feet.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Edward whispered to me, "Love, open your eyes."

I looked at Edward and after a moment, my brain registered that Edward was down on one knee the way he had been on my birthday so many years ago. I gasped in air and held my breath. I was fairly certain that this was not a promise ring.

Edward smiled up at me and softly said, "Bella Swan, I have loved you every moment since the day I first met you. You are the bravest, kindest and most wonderful person I know. I love you with all my heart and soul. You are my life, and have been since the moment you walked into that biology classroom. The years without you were like the blackest of nights with no stars or light. I am only truly alive when you are with me. I never want to be without you again. I love you more than life itself. Isabella Marie Swan, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"

Suddenly, there was a sensation that I had not felt since I was a human. There were tears of venom streaming down my cheeks. I didn't even think that was possible! They were tears of joy. Edward wanted to marry me! They distracted me for a moment when I brushed them away. I looked down as they glistened in the light on my already sparkling fingertips. However, after that brief moment, my eyes caught Edward's shirt and I focused on him again.

I took a few slow deep relaxing breathes and said with evident joy, "Edward Cullen, I have loved you from the moment I saw you walk into the cafeteria my first day at Forks High. I love you more than my life. I would do anything for you. I cannot live without you. I need you with me always. I would love to become your wife."

I smiled down at my Edward as he looked up at me with joy, making his face shine even more than the sunlight was. Slowly and reverently, Edward bent his head and kissed my hand before placing my engagement ring on my finger. I looked down and smiled. I recognized it. The ring was the one he had given me so long ago, except an extra row of diamonds had been added to wrap around the outside. It was the perfect ring for me and he knew it. Once the ring was securely on my finger, I threw my arms around him with such force that he fell backwards into the grass with me landing on top of him. Edward laughed and flashed his gorgeous crooked smile at me before he grabbed my face and pulled it down into his, kissing me with abandon.

Just as Edward's hands began to wander, I felt my phone vibrate. I threw it across the lawn. I knew exactly who was calling and I wasn't about to interrupt this moment for that little pixie, unless it was an emergency that needed our immediate attention. My phone went off twice more before Edward's phone began to go off relentlessly. I groaned. Edward rolled his eyes and said Alice's name with serious venom. I heard Alice's voice come through the speakers as she spoke so fast that only a vampire would be able to understand it.

Alice's voice was practically screaming shrilly through the phone, "You two need to get home now. Hurry up. There is something going on that you need to be here for."

Alice abruptly hung up the phone and after cursing at his pixie-like sister, Edward and I ran for the car.

As we pulled up to the house all I could think of was the first time I had come here with Edward to meet his family.

I smiled, and Edward asked me, "What are you thinking, love?"

I just said, "You'll see."

Then I pulled down my mental shield and showed him my memories. I heard Edward laugh in the seat next to me as we pulled the Volvo into the garage. We were still laughing as we walked into the house. The second we entered the living room however, the smiles fell from our faces when we took in the expressions we saw on everyone else's. A moment after that I realized that Renesmee was missing and my heart went into overdrive.

I looked fiercely at Jake and spat out, "Where is Nessie?"

He looked at me in complete agony and Alice reluctantly began to speak, "Bella, Ness went hunting last night. She never came back. I've been looking for visions that might include her but since I can't actually see her…"

Alice's voice trailed off into the now extremely pregnant silence. I looked at Edward as an expression of agony flashed across his face as well.

I turned towards him and he choked out, "Love, there - there were signs of - a struggle."

I felt myself dying inside. My baby was missing and someone had taken her. After all I had gone through to protect her from the Volturi she had still been taken from us. I felt my body start to shake. Almost instantly, Edward's arms snaked around me and pulled me to him. Edward's body was shaking too and we quickly fell into a jumbled heap on the floor sobbing. I unblocked my thoughts from Edward and let him see what I was feeling.

Edward said, "Love, we'll find her. I'm not about to allow anything to happen to her now."

I nodded into his shoulder and frantically started thinking about Jasper calming me down. I knew that my tears were not going to help me find my daughter.

Quickly Edward said, "Jasper, we need some help calming down here. I think this is going to be more effective if we aren't both freaking out."

I nodded at Jasper and felt a soothing and numbing calm come over me like a heavy blanket. I could feel the terror and agony still under the calm but I was able to think past it and allow the calm to control me.

Once I was in control, I said gravely, "I need to see the spot where you think she was taken. I will be able to find clues you may have missed. I was the head of the Volturi guard for 10 years. I was taught about what to look for. I need to see it for myself."

I started to hear objections from all over the room. Whatever evidence was there was going to be bad. I knew they weren't going to let me out the door and so I decided it was finally time to use the other part of my gift. I had only used it twice before in my existence. I hated how I felt afterwards. I knew Edward had already seen the scene in his head. I took down my whole shield and grabbed Edward's hand. I heard him gasp and I felt the flood of thoughts come through my body. I was completely overwhelmed. Edward's gift was nothing like Aro's. Hearing every voice was a complete overload at first. After a few moments though, I was able to control it and see what I wanted. I steeled myself and watched the grisly scene as it unfolded in front of my eyes.

I saw the family running through the trees, following Nessie's scent. I saw them find a dying, half-drained deer. I saw the marks in the trees that on closer inspection were clearly grooves from the nails of someone trying to hang onto its bark in a desperate attempt to not be carried off. I saw some blood on the ground and the scent in the memory told me that it wasn't from the deer. I saw them follow the path further to a small cabin, secluded deep in the woods. I saw the door open with a squeak. I saw blood everywhere. I could almost smell it. It was my daughter's blood. There was a lot of it. I could hear their thoughts about their doubts of her survival from so much blood loss. I looked closer and saw no body parts or anything of the like. I looked closely at the blood and noticed that it had been spilled over a prolonged amount of time. Whoever had done this, wanted us to think she was dead when she wasn't. I couldn't take it anymore and let go of Edward's hand and allowed my full shield to spring back into place as I sunk to the ground. Using someone else's power was draining.

Everyone started to speak at once, until I heard Jasper harshly say, "Stop, all of you - now! She's exhausted. Give her a few minutes."

Edward gently lifted me from the ground and into his arms and walked over to the pristine white couch holding me in his arms gently.

Finally, I felt my body regaining energy and I looked up at Edward and said, "She's not dead. She was drained of her blood a little bit at a time over a matter of hours. I am going to bet that you will find quite a few animal carcasses near the scene. They kept feeding her to keep her blood levels up. Her body works more like a vampire's than a human. She's still alive, for now. We need to find her. We have to find her. I can't…"

As I was about to start crying again, I felt another heavy wave of calm from Jasper and shot him a grateful expression. The whole family looked at me in shock and I quickly realized that they had no idea what had just transpired.

I looked at them and said, "My gift can be used another way. I hate doing it but I knew you wouldn't tell me what was going on to protect me. I needed to know so I pulled down both parts of my shield and borrowed Edward's gift for a moment. Now that I have seen it in my mind, I need to see it in person. I have been trained to track extremely well. I know what to look for, there will be clues. You are going to need me to find her."

Alice's eyes suddenly got that familiar blank expression for a few moments, and when they started to sparkle with her normal energy again, she said, "Bella needs to do this. It is the only way that Edward and Bella end up happy. I can only assume that it is the only way we find Nessie. Every other version of the future I see them in pain and mourning. We need to do this Bella's way."

I looked at my best friend gratefully and said, "Pack quickly. I need to make a phone call. Edward and Alice, please make sure I am packed."

I knew that Alice would pack completely inappropriate things and that Edward would help keep her from going too overboard.

As I turned to walk out of the house, I saw Jake still sitting there frozen like a zombie and my heart cried for him. I knew that look all too well. It was the look of pain and loss. I had the same look when I lost Edward.

I walked over to him, threw my arms around him, and said soothingly, "Jake, we'll find her. We'll bring her back to you. I need you and the rest of the pack to stay here. You need to protect Charlie and anyone else that we have connections with. Whoever took her is targeting the family, Edward, myself or you, and I don't want anyone else to get dragged into this."

Jacob looked at me for a moment in total agony and then I saw a look of fierce determination cross his face before he nodded at me gravely and ran out of the house, phasing the second his feet stepped across the front threshold.

I quickly moved out to the front yard and started running when I found the trees. I knew that Edward and no one else would feel comfortable with my next action but I knew I needed to do whatever I could to save me daughter.

I looked down at my phone, hit the voice command, and said, "Volturi council," with authority.

I knew the family did not yet trust the council and so I knew that they would be uncomfortable at the idea of the guard helping us find Nessie but I knew they were the best place to turn. After speaking with Jane, Alec and Marcus on speakerphone and confirming their assistance, I ran back for the house, eager to be on my way to our first stop, the place where Nessie had been bled.

The moment I got back to the house Edward came up to and said softly, "Bella, I know you trust the Volturi, but are you sure it will be okay? I know that Alice says nothing will go wrong but-"

I looked at him and with as much understanding as I could muster said, "Love, I wouldn't have called them if I had a single doubt. I know what the world thinks of them, but Chelsea's influence had so much sway over them. Please trust me, Edward."

I could see his heart break a little at fact that I had to ask for his trust.

He looked at me and said brokenly, "Love, I trust you with my whole life."

I smiled at him and threw my arms around him, determined to let him know that I didn't blame him.

Still smiling, I said, "I know you trust me, Edward. Trust them because I do."

He looked at me torn for a moment and then gravely nodded his head. I knew he would feel better about the situation as soon as he got a peek into their heads and so I let it go and we walked towards the waiting cars.

**Did anyone see this coming? Anyone think they know what's going on? Leave me a review!**


	26. Chapter 26 Two Strands

**A/N: Alright… I could have held things in suspense for a while, but apparently, I decided not to… I have mixed emotions about this chapter… let me know what you think!**

Chapter 26 - Two Strands

When we arrived at the small cottage hidden in the woods about five miles from the edge of Forks, I took a deep breath and collected myself. I knew that I needed to steel myself against what I was about to see in person. I had seen much more gruesome sights, however, most of them were people I had never met and the fact that this was my daughter was going to make it more difficult.

After a few deep breaths, I turned to my family and said, "I need to go in on my own. I need to be totally undistracted. I know what kinds of things I'm looking for and don't want to miss anything that might be vital to finding Ness."

Edward looked like he was in pain, not wanting to allow me to face this on my own but I knew he would never be able to handle this. I pulled down my shield for just a moment and thought, _Edward, let me be stronger than you for once and spare you this pain, love. Please stay here._ I looked at him imploringly and finally he nodded, and I turned and walked into the blood stained room.

For a moment, I was completely overwhelmed. The smell of stale blood filled my senses and I frantically swallowed the venom that was pooling in my mouth begging for a taste. I shuddered and focused my mind. I started looking over the room. I found obvious signs that Ness was here with two other people. There were three sets of muddy footprints and three distinct scents. I could smell the different animals they had fed her to keep her blood volume high. I could tell that even though they kept her fed, she had still been extremely weak when they left here from the way all of her footprints dragged across the floor slightly. There was a second, smaller room. No doubt, this is where the two vampires were while they let my daughter bleed, not wanting to lose control and feed on her. I thoroughly scanned the area. The room smelled of vampire and sex. I could not believe that they were able to be intimate while someone was screaming and bleeding in the next room. Just as I was about to move on I saw in a dust filled corner two strands of hair, one blond and relatively short and the other brilliant red and extremely long. I matched the scents from the hairs and was able to guess at the gender of each from the hair lengths. Something about the red one seemed very familiar. I stood there for an extended period but the memory refused to come. I took the hairs and walked out to face my family, not being able to stand being inside the room another moment.

I closed the door behind me and took some deep breaths. As I did, I felt a soothing blanket of calm spread over me. I looked over at Jasper and gave him a look of gratitude before I turned off my emotions again and addressed the family.

"Did anyone recognize the two vampire scents in there?" I asked with little hope.

Carlisle looked at me in astonishment and said, "Bella, all we could smell was Nessie. The blood completely overwhelmed us."

I nodded to Carlisle and said, "I figured that was the case anyway. I just thought I'd ask."

I held out the two hairs to Carlisle and Edward and said, "I need everyone to smell these carefully. Hopefully you can smell the vampire scent that lingers on them."

Edward and Carlisle each took a hair and both breathed in deeply simultaneously. It would have been funny had the situation not been so serious. As it was, I thought I heard Emmett muffle a slight chuckle and saw Jasper silently shake his head and roll his eyes. I looked back over at Edward and stopped all other train of thought. Edwards golden eyes were huge and round, his mouth open in a small 'O' shape and a look of horror and shock read across his face and body.

I moved over to him quickly and finally he spat out with all the venom and hatred he could, "Victoria!"

I growled in pain, hatred and fear, and ran towards the faint but remaining trail towards the road where the cars were located, tracking the horrid monster who had taken my daughter from me. I could hear the rest of them following behind me and Edward was quickly closing. Without a word, we loaded the cars, rolled down the windows and followed the scent. I threw myself across the seat into Edward's arms allowing the pain of what I had seen and the terror I felt for my daughter consumed me while we sped towards Victoria.

After a few minutes I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket and saw Jane's name come up on the caller ID. I almost instantly answered the phone with a terse greeting and talked with the Volturi leader, arranging a time and place to meet up with the guard contingent they had sent to help us find Renesmee. We were still following Victoria's trail, which was steadily getting stronger as we went. She never veered off course. It was as if she wanted us to find her. Was it possible that she wanted that? Why would she want such a large vampire coven to find her, even if she didn't know about the guard, unless - Suddenly it hit me with such force that I gasped audibly. Victoria was not going to be the only one waiting for us. She had a lot more than one companion. She wasn't afraid of anyone finding her. She was confident enough that she would win any battle she faced. She had an army, probably a newborn army due to the difficulty she would have getting anyone but newborns to work for her. I let down my shield and allowed Edward to hear my thoughts. A fraction of a second later, Edward cried out and I whipped out my cell phone. Jasper was in the other car and he was the only one who had a chance to help us now. I tried voice dialing but I was so worked up that the phone could not recognize my voice. I growled fiercely at the seriously flawed piece of technology and then dialed Jasper's cell by hand.

Jasper answered before the first ring even ended and said, "Alice had a very interesting vision about a newborn army the moment you figured it out Bella. You are correct. We are looking at a newborn army somewhere in the upper teens, most of them old enough to keep from attacking Ness but young enough to still have a newborn's speed and strength. Call Jane now, Bella. I need to know how many are joining us. Alice is having trouble pinpointing an exact number."

I gave a quick reply and then hung up the phone to call Volterra again. Jane seemed to take an eternity to answer the phone that was in reality only a few seconds.

Without greeting or preamble, I barked out, "Jane, I need to know how many you sent to Washington now. We have a large group of newborns to worry about."

I heard Jane take a quick shocked breath on the other side of the phone and then she fired out, "Bella we sent most of the same group that went after the Cullens. I knew I could trust them. Alec is leading them. They should arrive within the hour. The moment I hear from them, I'll have them call you."

Jane went on to list the six vampires who would be joining us. Then, I thanked her quickly, hung up the phone, and called Jasper back to let him know the results of my conversation. With the eight of us, and the six members of the guard it would be close but we would make it out all right. Now we just had to figure out how to get Ness out of there without any harm coming to her.

Our phones were constantly ringing off the hook as we drove. The Volturi guard contingent caught up with us and we caravanned down through Mexico and through Central America. Alice revealed that Victoria was in southern Chile and that Renesmee would be scared and confused, but physically fine when we got there, not really understanding why Victoria would want to hurt her. As we drove, however, Victoria was somehow getting news as well. She was frantically increasing the size of her army how as we drove towards her. It was a race against time that we had very little chance of winning now that her army was growing daily. I blocked my mind and thought about my options. The only real choice I had was to give myself to Victoria in exchange for Nessie. I would give anything to protect my daughter and it looks like it is time to do so. Alice started calling my phone frantically. I should have known that she would have seen my decision the moment I made it. I ignored the phone until Edward mentioned it. I blew it off saying something about wanting to relax and be ready to fight when the time came.

After what seemed like forever, we arrived a few miles outside of Victoria's camp. Alec, Carlisle, Edward, Jasper and I left the group as soon as they got started setting up so that we could plan together. Carlisle and Edward were severely out of place in this situation, however I could not deny them the chance to protect someone they loved.

Just as we were about to start the planning, Jasper pulled me aside and harshly whispered, "Bella, I've been blocking my thoughts from Edward, but what you want to do is suicide. You need our help. Stop being stubborn and let us help for once. We can get to her without you sacrificing yourself. Giving yourself up will allow Victoria to win. Alice has seen it Bella. Don't you dare trying to do this alone!"

I looked at Jasper and saw that he meant every word he said, but I needed to see it for sure.

"Edward?" I called out into the cooling air.

Edward came walking over to us with a very serious expression on his face.

He gently wrapped his arms around me and said, "Yes, love?"

I looked at him and said, "I need to know if Jasper is telling the truth."

Edward looked back at me and finally solemnly nodded. I could see emotions flicker over Edwards face as he watched.

Finally Edward said, "Love, he's telling the truth and there is no way I would have allowed you to do that anyway. She is our daughter. You are not going to fight this alone. We have a planning session to start. Let's go."

I could tell that Edward was angry with me for my plans. I guess if things had been reversed, I would have been mad and terrified as well. After we rescued Ness, we would have more talking to do.

**Next chapter will be up next weekend! Reviews make me smile and I will need many reasons to smile this week with four concerts in three days!**


	27. Chapter 27 Reclaiming

**A/N: Okay… so I don't know if this is what you expected but- here it is :)**

Chapter 27- Reclaiming

We went through half a dozen strategies until we found one that would work. Originally, we were going to pick them off a few at time, however Alice's visions told us that this strategy wouldn't work in this case because Victoria would kill Nessie before we could get to her. Finally, we decided to start right after nightfall and disguise ourselves as newborns using bright red contacts that the Volturi had with them. We had used this strategy before. Newborns were so driven by their instincts and personnel changed over in newborn armies so frequently, we would be able to sneak into the camp without arising suspicion. The guard would sneak into the inner part of the camp and locate Victoria and Ness. The second Edward got a signal from them through their thoughts, we would cause a diversion using large quantities of human blood. Then the guard would attack Victoria and rescue Ness. I could tell that the Cullens were uncomfortable trusting the most sensitive part of the plan to the guard, but were allowing it due to my trust in them.

Once the planning session ended, we all tried to keep ourselves occupied until we could start our attack on Victoria. I knew the danger that we were up against and I could hardly concentrate on anything else. Edward held me close, trying to comfort me the best that he knew how. Normally Edward's arms around me would drive away any other thought, but knowing our daughter's life was in danger was keeping even Edward from comforting me. A couple of times I could swear that I heard Edward growl, but I could not even focus on that, due to my extreme concern for Renesmee. Finally, Jasper came in and mumbled something about not being able to take it anymore and I felt a blanket of calm come over me. I relaxed into Edward's arms and was finally able to stop panicking. We would be able to stop Victoria and get her back. We had to, I had promised Jacob I would bring her back to him, and I kept my promises.

Finally, the time came and we all gathered and started moving to our positions to start the attack. I saw the guard continue and could not help a momentary wave of worry come over me. I knew they were trained to deal with this kind of situation but it was still hard not to want to protect them from the dangers ahead. They were now almost family to me as well. I watched Alec disappear into the black distance and my heart gripped with fear, wondering if I would ever see him or any of the others alive again. Quickly I turned my attention back to my task. If I did not complete my part of this mission, we would be in serious trouble. I threw my shield over everyone and then moved with purpose to my first target, and tore them apart as silently as possible. The carnage had begun.

The newborns seemed endless. I took mine down with ease. This was something I had been trained how to do. Just as I finished up with my assigned newborns, I looked over at Edward and froze in place. He was surrounded by four newborns that had backed him into a corner. I ran, as fast as I could and even as I ran, I knew I was going to be too late. I ran harder and screamed his name as loud as I could, hoping to distract them. Instead of distracting them however I watched with horror as Edward turned his head my way. Then I saw a female newborn flash a horrible smile as she leapt towards him. Just as I thought I had lost him, I saw a blonde intercept the female newborn mid-leap. I gave an extra burst of speed I didn't even know I had and got in front of Edward. The three of us quickly disabled the newborns. I turned to look at the blonde vampire and smiled broadly when I saw Jasper smiling back at me.

I grinned and said, "Alice?"

Jasper nodded and Edward threw his arms around both of us. Jaz disentangled himself after a moment and said something about Alice. I didn't hear him, I was too focused staring into Edward's eyes transfixed.

I finally choked out, "Don't you ever scare me like that again, Edward Anthony Masen Cullen. I can't live in a world where you don't exist!"

Edward grinned at me sheepishly and said reluctantly, "It's my fault; I, um - saw you fighting and kind of got distracted. I didn't hear the newborns until they were on top of me, love. I didn't mean to scare you."

I groaned and dragged him with me. After that incident there was no way I was letting him out of range again.

After we helped everyone else clean up the newborns, we turned our attention to the inner part of the camp, anxious to get to Renesmee. When we caught up with the guard, they had taken care of everyone except for Victoria, a blond vampire, and two newborns. In a room behind them, I could hear Renesmee breathing heavily and her heart breathing even faster than was normal for her. I fought every urge I had to head straight for Victoria. Victoria looked hard at Edward and I and then abruptly turned for the door. The guards leapt after the others but were unable to get to Victoria. I deftly moved around them and towards the door. Edward was instantly at my side, along with Jasper. I looked at them and motioned for them to stay behind me as I kicked the door down. Once the door was out of the way, I gasped. Victoria was standing there, teeth bared at Nessie's neck. Victoria gave a gruesome victorious grin as she moved in to rip our daughter's head off. I flew across the room in a red haze, my focus on Victoria. I grabbed her by the throat and threw her up against a wall. I saw out of my peripheral vision as Jasper whisked Nessie out of the room and to safety.

Edward came up next to me and said, "Victoria, this ends here and now."

With that, he nodded to me. I felt Victoria relax in my grip almost welcoming death. Edward began to rip her limbs from her body.

Just as I moved my teeth to her neck, I heard her softly say, "James, I'm coming at last."

The moment we finished dismembering her now lifeless body I pulled out my silver lighter, one of my few remaining items from my days as part of the Volturi guard. I lit it, set fire to Victoria, and watched as the room filled with a deep choking purple smoke. Wordlessly, I grabbed Edward's hand and we went to join our family.

The moment we cleared the house I felt an extremely warm pair of arms circle around my waist. I threw my arms around her and hugged my little one with as much strength as I dared. I looked up at Edward as he smiled and wrapped his arms around the both of us. Soon, I felt other arms circling the group. We stood there for a few moments as a family holding each other.

Finally, Nessie smiled up at me and said, "Mom, I'm never ever going to cross grandma, ever!"

I looked at her with a puzzled and amused expression to hear Esme referred to as grandma and wonder what she was talking about.

She laughed and said, "Esme is fiercer than all of you put together. I saw her dismember a newborn in twelve seconds flat. Remind me never to get on her bad side."

Edward and I laughed knowing that Esme was incredibly protective of her children, and now her grandchild apparently. Carlisle gave his wife an amused grin and the other four started to laugh along with us.

Esme merely looked at us all sheepishly and said, "I protect my children - and now granddaughter but umm…Ness you can call me Esme or mom. I don't think I can handle the title grandma on a regular basis, as long as you are okay with that Bella."

Esme looked at me expectantly. I laughed again at the absurdity of a woman who looked 26 being referred to as grandma and nodded with a smile at Esme. Nessie laughed and we all turned and started to walk out of the woods, Edward and I never releasing our hold on our daughter.

Okay so Consequences now has a beta! Ginginlee is going through from the beginning and helping me smooth out the rough edges and is doing a better job than I could ever dream of. In the past week she has done the first twelve chapters, which I will start reposting this week.

Other news- this last week my one shot Losing Bella was accepted on Twilighted. Woo Hoo! Hopefully Consequences is next :)

Let me know what you think about this chapter. Originally it was a longer ordeal but I felt like we have already dragged our favorite family through enough on this one- so I shortened it up. Let me know if you think it works or if you wanted to see more!

I should be posting more often however we've only got a handful of chapters to go people- sad but true!


	28. Chapter 28 Returning

**A/N: Okay, again I'm sorry it's been over a week but real life is crazy right now. This week and next though until summer vacation- which translates to more writing time and more frequent posts :)**

Chapter 28- Returning

The moment the house in Forks came into view, Jacob threw the door open and started running towards the cars.

Edward laughed quietly and said, "Staying here while we went to hunt the bad vampires was very difficult on him. He is really worried about you, Nessie. I guess he really does love you like crazy, sweetheart."

Nessie smiled up at her father and I looked at them both with a sense of great contentment. Edward and I had our baby back, and we were together, finally. Everything was falling into place. The moment the car stopped Jake yanked the door open and Nessie flew into his waiting arms. Edward and I turned to look at each other to give them the privacy they deserved for their reunion.

Edward smiled at me and said, "You are quite the scary little monster my dear. I have never seen anyone who can fight with the skill you can, and here I thought I was going to have to protect you. You always do what I don't expect."

I smiled at him and said, "Love, if I did what you expected, what fun would there be in that?"

Edward grinned at me mischievously and said, "True, love."

Then he pulled me swiftly from the car. Just as we were about to head for the car Nessie gasped and grabbed my hand.

She looked at the ring for a split second and then she started screaming, threw her arms around us, and said, "You guys are getting married?"

We smiled at our daughter and both nodded together. All the sudden, in my periphery, I saw Alice's eyes go blank.

In a split second, Alice refocused and started talking so fast that even Ness couldn't understand her saying, "Thank you, thank you, thank you. I can't believe I get to plan a double wedding."

Edward, Ness, Jake and I all rolled our eyes and said, "Damn little pixie!" in unison.

Ness and Jake were lost in their own moment. I had a feeling they would be focused on each other for quite a while. I turned and faced the bouncing and spastic version of my best friend that was currently hopping up and down – literally - on the front lawn.

I opened my mouth, but before I could get a word out, she said frantically, "I know your conditions, Bella, and I have no problem with them, it will work out better that way anyway. I promise not to go too overboard. Bella, please don't give me a hard time about this, please?"

I groaned again and said with obvious annoyance, "Fine, Alice, but no going overboard!"

Edward turned to me, laughing, and said, "Besides not going overboard, what were your conditions?"

I laughed and said, "There was only one really. We are getting married before our daughter does. I am not going to watch my daughter get married before her parents make it down the aisle."

Edward wrapped his arms around me and laughingly said, "I wouldn't have it any other way love."

I smiled back at him and we got lost in a moment of our own. We were really finally getting married and nothing was going to pull us apart again.

Aww cute right? We still have a few chapters to go :)

The bad news is that I may not get one up for a couple of weeks. I have to get the school year closed out which is going to be crazy and I am not going to have a spare minute to myself. The good news is that by that time my wonderful beta ginginlee will probably be caught up so you will get beta-ed chapters :)

I apologize and will post as soon as I can :)

If you get bored and just have nothing to read, go check out my blog for suggestions ;)

.com/dnabgeek/


	29. Chapter 29 Charlie

**A/N: Alright- I was planning to get this up this weekend but I waited just a bit longer because my beta ginginlee already got caught up with me and I wanted to give you the edited version of the chapter. Just a couple more days of school until I'm back to writing like mad! Hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 29 – Charlie

A few days later, we decided that it was finally time to tell Charlie and Renee the truth about what was going on. I called Renee and asked her if it would be possible for her to fly to Forks. After spending quite a while convincing her it was me and that I was okay, we put together all the details and decided it was time to head over to Charlie's. I knew I had to go to him first. He already knew the hardest piece of the puzzle and we were going to need him when Phil and Renee showed up from Florida. After we finished arranging everything for Renee's visit, Edward, Nessie, Jacob and I loaded Edward's old Volvo and headed towards Charlie's house. Nessie was bouncing up and down in her seat, completely excited at the chance to finally meet Charlie. Jacob was amused and happy to finally tell Charlie the identity of his mystery girl. The thought hit me that Charlie had always wanted Jacob as a part of his family, and now he was getting that. I felt my face break out into an amused smile. Edward turned to the side slightly to give me a questioning look. I pulled my shield down and shared my thought with him.

Edward laughed lightly and said, "Well I'm glad it's our daughter and not you allowing that to happen, love."

I giggled and nodded at my –fiancé. It was so strange to be referring to Edward in that way, but soon I was going to get to use a much better title - husband.

As we pulled up to Charlie's house, I heard him talking animatedly to someone whose voice I recognized. It took me a moment to place it, but when I did, I gasped. It was Sue Clearwater and it sounded very much like we were about to interrupt a date.

I started to question entering the house but Edward softly said, "Love, they know someone is here. Plus, Charlie really wants to see you, dearest."

I smiled gratefully up at him, and then steeled myself as I opened the car door. I took a few deep breaths as Edward and I walked to the front door and knocked on it. The few moments it took Charlie to come to the door seemed like an eternity. Finally, I heard the door unlock and the door swung open to reveal my father. His mouth immediately fell open and he stood there in shock for a moment. Sue laughed and came to the door. The moment she stepped into view, she stopped and gasped.

Edward smiled and addressed Sue, "Sue, don't worry. The pack knows we are here. We need to sit down and talk with you."

Sue gave us both a hard nod and walked into the living room. Charlie came out of his trance then and threw his arms around me. I smiled and let out a small laugh and gently hugged him back. Sue looked on in a mix of terror and amazement. I finally broke away from Charlie and looked at Edward questioningly.

Edward chuckled and said, "Sue doesn't understand how you can hug Charlie like that and not hurt him or drink his blood."

I smiled and laughed as well and then turned to address Sue. I smiled at her and said, "Sue, I'm not exactly your typical vampire. None of us are. You should know that by now."

Sue looked at me apologetically and murmured something that sounded like 'yah'. Charlie was frozen to the spot once again. I looked at Edward and then dad, realizing that although Sue would understand exactly what each of the Cullens could do as a member of the elders, Charlie would have no idea that Edward could read minds.

I turned and faced my dad and said, "Charlie, we have a lot to tell you. You might want to sit down, Dad."

He nodded and sat down next to Sue, taking her hand like it was a reflex action. I smiled and my dad got quickly embarrassed.

I looked at him and said softly, "I'm happy for you two, Dad."

He smiled back at me sheepishly.

I knew my dad was going to have a hard time dealing with this all on his own so I turned to Sue and said, "Sue, do you know everything, including about Nessie?"

Sue looked at me with a calculating expression and nodded before saying, "I thought you couldn't tell him - ever."

I smiled at Sue and said, "Sue, things have changed dramatically. The former laws no longer apply. I am not putting him at risk in any way today."

Sue relaxed and smiled slightly at me.

Charlie finally interrupted roughly saying, "I don't like being talked about like I'm not here! Someone tell me what's going on. I've already dealt with the fact that my daughter is a vampire, what else could be so hard to deal with?"

I took a deep breath and pulled down my shield, knowing I was going to need Edward's help.

Edward smiled when he realized what I had done, but said low enough that only I could hear, "Love, then I can't hear Charlie."

I growled slightly in frustration and snapped my shield back into place. I took a few unnecessary calming breathes and then steeled myself to start telling Charlie everything.

"Dad, there is something you need to know beyond just the fact that I am a vampire. I know you are going to have a lot of questions, but it will be easier if you let us hit you with everything at once and then start asking questions later; trust me," I said hurriedly, barely slow enough for Charlie to understand me.

Charlie warred with himself and then finally nodded. Sue patted his hand with hers reminding him that she was there to comfort him. I smiled at her, glad my dad had someone to take care of him.

"I think we better start with the fact that you are going to have a wedding to attend in a few weeks. Edward and I are finally getting married. Alice already has a tuxedo for you, and we'll get you fitted for it. Sue, I'm sure that Alice has something for you too," I said and then took a breath or two to give Charlie some processing time.

Sue smiled and said, "We'll be there, Bella. He already was planning on going; he just didn't know it was going to be a double wedding."

I smiled back at her, looked at Charlie, and said, "Dad are you ok?"

He gulped and nodded his head.

Edward bent over and whispered in my ear, "Love, he wants to hear it all. He wants to get it over with so he can deal with all of it at once."

I smiled at Edward and nodded my head.

"Dad, the next thing I need to tell you is going to be hard to hear. I can now tell you the whole reason I left. Dad, I left because I was pregnant with Edward's child. You're a grandfather. Her name is Renesmee, and she's beautiful and perfect and is half vampire and half human," I said and I stopped for a moment as I saw Charlie go into sensory overload.

Finally he choked out, "Can I see her?"

I smiled at him and nodded.

I quickly said, "In a little bit dad, I promise. There is more."

Charlie looked at me incredulously and said, "More, Bells? Seriously?"

I looked at him and nodded. Charlie closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. I heard him mumble something about handling werewolves and he should be able to handle this.

I smiled, winked at Edward, Edward smiled back, and then whispered into my ear, "He's handling this really well love. He can't wait to see his ten year old granddaughter."

My mouth popped open and I looked at Edward. I realized I was going to have to explain her age as well.

Finally I said, "Dad, there is something you need to know. I got pregnant on my eighteenth birthday. Renesmee was born a month later. She has developed much quicker than a human child ever would. She reached adulthood three years ago dad."

My father's mouth popped open at this and he looked at me in shock.

I knew I had to get this out completely and so I said, "Dad, I became a vampire the day I gave birth to Nessie."

Charlie looked at me and I started to speak but Edward put his hand on me, letting me know to wait.

Finally, Charlie said, "Did he - I mean did Edward turn you?"

I looked at him sadly and said softly, "No, Dad, that is an extremely long story. Edward and I didn't see each other again until recently. I'll explain that another time, there are more pressing issues."

I could see Charlie wanting to push the issue, but finally he settled down and Edward smiled at me, encouraging me to continue.

I smiled at my dad and said, "Charlie, we're almost done. Only one more thing you need to hear, I promise. Dad, Ness is getting married the same day Edward and I are. Dad - she's marrying Jacob Black."

Charlie stared at me blankly for a moment until understanding leaked in.

Finally, he looked at me expectantly and I said softly, "Dad, would you like to meet Nessie?"

My dad looked at me gratefully and nodded. I smiled at him and went to the door to go get Ness and Jacob from the car. The second they saw me at the door, the car door opened and Jacob helped Renesmee out of the car.

Knowing Jake could hear me I said, "Edward is wearing off on you, Jacob."

I saw Jacob scowl and heard Edward and Nessie laugh.

Then Charlie said, "What?" and while I let them in, Edward explained our hearing to Charlie and the joke as well.

Charlie burst out into laughter just as Ness and Jacob rounded the corner. The moment his eyes landed on Renesmee, he took in a quick breath and held it for a moment.

Ness let go of Jacob's hand and walked to Charlie and said, "It's so nice to finally meet you."

Charlie didn't say a word and silent tears started streaming down his face. After a moment, Charlie reached out for Nessie and hugged his granddaughter for the first time. I knew if I could cry, I would. I felt Edward gently wrap his arms around me and kiss me softly on the cheek. I turned my head and smiled back at him. Our family was finally how it should be.

Many hours later, we left Charlie's house. Ness and Jacob fell asleep the instant the car started moving. It had been an emotional day for both of them. Jacob was finally joining the family and Ness finally got to know her grandfather. Edward and I explained all the abilities the Cullens had. Charlie freaked out slightly when he found out that Edward could hear his thoughts and it took every ounce of my vampire control not to laugh at the two of them apologizing to each other. I about choked when Charlie started laughing like crazy out of the blue. I looked at Edward as he, my usually serious fiancé, started laughing too.

I crossed my arms and Charlie finally choked out, "Your mother is going to think you're nuts. I want to be there when you tell her."

I smiled widely and said, "Dad, why do you think we are telling you first?"

I smiled to myself thinking back on the day as Edward drove us all home. The moment we got to the house Edward, reached in the back seat and gently took our sleeping daughter out of the car. I smiled as I watched him have a truly fatherly moment with his daughter. As soon as he got in the house, I nudged Jake and woke him up.

Jake looked up at me confused and I laughed and said, "We're back at the mansion, you and Ness passed out. Edward took Nessie up to bed. The guest bedroom is ready for you Jake."

Jacob got up groggily and stumbled up the stairs and into bed. I could swear I heard him complain about not being able to sleep in the same room with his fiancé but I quickly blocked it out, not wanting to know that information and finally understood how Charlie must have felt when I was dating Edward as I suppressed a shudder.

I walked into the living room to find a full-blown video game tournament well underway. The whole family was participating. I laughed watching their childish antics.

After a minute Jasper noticed me and said, "Oh no, Bella, you aren't getting out of this one. Someone toss her a controller."

I groaned but reluctantly sat down next to Edward joining the game.

Two hours later the only people left were Emmett and I. The rest of the family was sitting on the couches behind us as Emmett and I took up the floor space. I could feel Emmett get more and more frustrated as he began to fall further and further behind. I laughed as he growled at me. Then I pulled even further ahead to lap his car just as the game announced the winner. I looked over at Emmett with a smug look on my face. Emmett sat there boiling and stomped off to his room, Rose laughing as she followed to comfort the ego of her defeated champion. The whole family started laughing and congratulating me.

Edward wrapped his arms around me and said, "Way to go, love, you're the first one of us to beat him in years."

I smiled and said, "After Felix and Demetri, Emmett wasn't much of a challenge."

I smirked in the direction of Rose and Emmett's room as I heard Emmett growl and tear down the stairs towards me while the rest of the family laughed.

Emmett looked at me with a furious expression and finally growled out, "Arm wrestling, you and me, now."

I smiled sweetly back at my brother and said, "Emmett, I don't want to beat you twice in one night," and then acted like I was going to turn away from the challenge.

Emmett grabbed me by the arm and I heard Edward growl softly.

I shook off his grip as he huffed out, "Outside now, ya smug little brat."

I giggled and skipped out the door after him. Carlisle decided to judge the match and once he started it in a split second, I slammed Emmett's hand into the boulder we were using for a table.

Emmett mumbled something about not being ready and he said gruffly, "Again."

Carlisle smiled and started another match. This time I toyed with Emmett for a few seconds before beating him soundly again. Emmett then took his fist, slammed it through the rock out of frustration, and moved at vampire speed back into the house.

Rose rolled her eyes at me and said, "Thanks, Bella, it's gonna take me days to get him to leave our room."

I smiled and said, "That's an awful lot of frustration to work out," and winked at my new sister.

Rose laughed and said breathlessly, "Well, I guess I better get started, huh?"

I laughed and wrapped myself around Edward as Rose went to join her husband in the house. I looked around and smiled at my family as we moved inside to watch a movie while we waited for Ness and Jacob to wake up.

()()()()()()()()()()()()()()()

**Our poor kids needed a fun break.. they haven't had much lighthearted anything in my piece so- there ya go ;)**

**Let me know what you think!**


	30. Chapter 30 Renee and Phil

A/N: Okay, here is the next chapter Consequences just got accepted over on Twilighted as well, which I am so excited about! I am also out of school now for the next couple months and hope to have a lot more time to write I hope to finish the other side of this before the end of summer…

Chapter 30 - Renee and Phil

A week later, Renee and Phil came into town. Renee was dying of curiosity over the whole thing. She had called me every day since I spoke to her, relieved that I was okay and that she was finally going to get to see her baby after all this time. I told her how much I loved her and how much I had missed her over and over again. She kept on pressing for details, but I kept telling her to trust me and that I would tell her everything as soon as she got into town.

Charlie and Sue went to the airport to pick up Renee while Edward and I, and the rest of the Cullens, waited anxiously at the mansion. Carlisle, Esme and Jasper were having the hardest time being allowed to reveal the truth to select humans because they had lived so long having to keep everything about our existence a secret. I was nervous because I wasn't sure how Renee would react to seeing me again.

Edward took in a quick breath and softly said, "I can hear Renee and Phil's thoughts now. They are concerned because Charlie warned them that you look slightly different than they might expect. Jake is actually driving them. They must have stopped at your dad's house on the way over."

As I started moving nervously beside Edward, I felt his familiar arms pull me towards him as he smiled and said, "Love, only you would be restless even as a vampire."

I smiled at him slightly before I resumed fidgeting while we waited for them to arrive.

An eternity later, I heard the knock on the door and Carlisle and Esme stood up to answer it.

Without preamble or response to Carlisle and Esme, Renee said sharply, "Where is Bella?"

Esme smiled at Renee and pointed towards the living room where Edward and I were sitting on a couch with our backs to the door. Renee came into the room and nervously said my name. I took a deep breath and slowly stood up from the couch. Then, using a slow human speed, I turned around to face my mother. Renee gasped and covered her mouth in shock. She raked me over with her eyes as she took in my altered appearance. Finally, she shook her head and moved over to me, wrapping her arms around me whispering my name repeatedly. I carefully wrapped my arms around her and hugged her back for a few moments until the chill of my skin seeped through her clothing and registered for her.

She took a step back in shock and said, "Bella, you're freezing - are you alright?"

I looked at my mom and couldn't help it. I laughed as did the rest of the family with the exception of Phil.

Renee was starting to get extremely upset and I said, "Mom, I'm fine. I'm sorry we are all so used to it that it's amusing to see you realize how cold I am."

Renee gave me a calculating look and firmly said, "I need explanations now. Your eyes are a different color, you're freezing cold to the touch, and you haven't aged a day since I saw you last. Not to mention where you've been for the last decade, Isabella Marie Swan. Start talking, now."

Thankfully, Carlisle and Charlie intervened and convinced Renee to sit down and get comfortable.

Renee and Phil awkwardly took seats in the open love seat as the rest of the family sat down on various couches with their significant others.

Carlisle took the lead and said, "Renee, there is much to say here. Let's start with introductions, so you know who we are. Like I said at the door, I am Carlisle Cullen and this is my wife, Esme."

Renee stood up and shook their hands with a puzzled expression.

All the sudden a light bulb seemed to go off in her head. "Carlisle, I remember you from Phoenix. You're Edward's parents, aren't you?" she said in surprise.

Carlisle smiled at her warmly and said, "Yes, Edward is our adopted son."

With that, Edward winked at me, stood up, and said, "Renee, I'm Edward Cullen. We met in Phoenix. It is nice to see you again."

Renee reluctantly shook hands with Edward and glared at him. Apparently, she had yet to get over what had happened when he left me all those years ago. I decided to intervene on Edward's behalf.

I smiled at my mom and said, "Mom, I know it's going to be hard to believe now but there was a good reason for everything that happened. Don't judge Edward too harshly until we've had a chance to explain."

Renee thought for a moment and then nodded her head sharply once. The rest of the 'children' introduced themselves, including Renesmee.

Renee looked at her closely and then asked, "Is she related to you, Edward?"

Edward laughed lightly and said, "Yes, Renee, she is."

Then Renee addressed Jacob and said, "Jake, not that I don't love you and your family, but why are you here?"

Jake smiled at Renesmee and said, "Well, the woman I'm engaged to is actually Nessie. We are getting married here in a few weeks. I believe I told you a bit about her in the car."

Renee's eyes bugged out of her head for a moment, and then she said, "Congratulations, Jacob."

Jake smiled warmly back at my mother and thanked her. Edward had a strange look on his face momentarily but then put on a careful mask. I knew something was going on. Phil chimed in his congratulations and said something undecipherable about seeing what Jacob had meant. I turned my head and winked at Jake and Nessie, amused that Renee and Phil had no idea who they were congratulating yet.

An awkward silence fell over the group. I knew it was my time to start explaining to Phil and Renee about everything.

I took a deep breath and said, "Mom, the world is not exactly the way you think it is. Some things have remained hidden for a long time because the world was not ready to face them. Today is going to change your perspective on the world, Mom. Then things will start to fall into place. I think the easiest way to do this is with Jake's help. Jake, I think it's time for you to phase."

My mother and Phil looked at me with questioning eyes. I merely gestured towards Jake who shot them both a smile.

Jake said, "Renee, I'm still the same Jake you've always known. There's just a little bit more to me than meets the eye. There is no reason to be afraid of me, okay?"

Renee nodded at Jake still confused, and I smiled and nodded at Jacob to encourage him to go for it. Jake grinned mischievously as he stripped down to his boxers. I laughed as Edward went over to cover Nessie's eyes. I had a distinct feeling that Ness had already seen all of him, but I wasn't about to let Edward know that. Then Jake took a breath as his body shuddered and fur exploded out of his skin, transforming into a wolf.

Renee's eyes grew to the size of saucers. Phil instinctively climbed back into the seat as far as he could, putting his arm around Renee.

Jake gave them both a wolfy grin and I said, "Jake, come here."

Jacob ambled over to me and sat next to me. I quickly lowered my shield and warned Edward that I was going to pet Jake so that my parents could see he was safe. Edward nodded and I started petting Jake's soft, thick fur, and he hummed contentedly under my touch.

Renee looked at him and finally said, "What is he exactly?"

I smiled and said, "Mom Jake is a shape shifter. Something similar to a werewolf, but without the need for a full moon. It's a Quileute thing."

Renee turned to Carlisle and Esme and said, "You are okay with your daughter marrying someone like this?"

Carlisle nodded at Renee and I could see Esme trying to hold in a giggle. Finally, Jake got up and moved behind the couch and phased back, dressing as Edward tossed him his clothes.

After a few moments, Phil finally spoke up and said, "Are there real werewolves?"

Carlisle smiled and said, "Yes, Phil, but they are almost completely extinct."

Phil's eyes grew wider after this and my mom said, "There's a whole lot more coming, isn't there, Bella?"

I looked at my mother with the most sympathetic look I could and nodded gravely.

Charlie decided to speak up and said, "Renee, I know all of it. It's a lot to take in but without knowing it is going to be hard to have our daughter back in our lives, so you need to steel up and deal with this."

Charlie shifted his gaze to Phil and said, "You too, man. I can see you are great for Renee. You are going to need to help her handle this."

Phil nodded and Renee looked at everyone in turn, completely overwhelmed by all of it. I lowered my shield and mentally asked Edward how I should handle explaining the fact that we were vampires.

Using a voice only a vampire could hear he said, "Love, I think it's better to do this slowly. She's still trying to deal with the fact that baby Jake is a werewolf. The image of your mom holding an infant version of Jacob is rather amusing."

I smiled at Edward and snuggled into him.

Finally, Renee looked at me sharply and said, "Bella, exactly what does this have to do with you?"

I smiled nervously at Renee and said, "Mom, the wolves are not the only supernatural beings out there. In fact, they are not the only supernatural beings in this room."

Renee gasped and said, "You, Bella?"

I smiled at my mother with as much reassurance as possible and said softly, "Yah, Mom, me," and stood up to pull open the curtains.

It was time for my mom to see me sparkle.

I stood by the curtains and said, "Mom, what did you notice that was different about me today?"

Renee slowly said, "Your eyes are a different color. Completely."

I nodded and I said, "Mom, look at the rest of the Cullens' eyes, except for Nessie."

Renee seriously studied everyone's eye color and then gasped when she realized and choked out, "They are all identical."

I smiled and said, "The eyes are one marker of what we are. Now, what else did you notice?"

Renee stiffened for a moment and then softly said, "Your temperature. You're ice cold, Bella."

I smiled and said, "Mom, so are the rest of the Cullens besides Ness, it's another marker. Anything else you noticed?"

Renee nodded her head and said, "You've - you've changed. Your features have altered. You are completely gorgeous, honey, but you don't look a day older than eighteen."

I smiled and said, "Mom, the rest of the Cullens were in high school with me. Do they look old enough to be close to thirty either?"

Renee looked at them all and shook her head in wonder.

Finally, she whispered, "You smell sweet."

I smiled at her and said, "The last of the most noticeable markers without sunlight."

Phil gasped and Edward chuckled saying at vampire speed, "Phil's figured it out but doesn't want to believe it."

I smiled at Phil and said, "Phil, if we had red eyes you would have reason to worry, but since we have golden eyes, know we aren't going to hurt you. We are what you think."

Phil gasped and sat there shaking his head.

I gently said, "Mom, there is one more marker, I'm going to move these curtains and it will become clear why I didn't come to get you today while the sun was out."

With that, I slowly pulled the curtains away from the windowed wall and suddenly the room was filled with sparkling shimmering vampires.

Renee gasped and looked at us all in shock before she whispered, "What are you?"

I smiled and said, "Mom, I promise you we won't hurt you. Do you believe me?"

Renee silently nodded her head and I softly said, "Mom, we are vampires."

With that, Renee's eyes fluttered closed as she fainted.

Phil sat there for a moment panicking until I gently said, "Phil, let Carlisle take care of her, he's a doctor, remember?"

Phil nodded dumbly and allowed Carlisle to lay her on the floor and examine her.

After a moment Carlisle said, "She's fine, everyone, just her body dealing with the shock."

Phil and Charlie talked quietly about the situation, Charlie helping Phil to deal with the whole thing as best he could. Finally, my mom began to stir and her eyes began to open.

She looked up at me and said, "Bella, I just had the worst dream. I dreamt that you were a vampire."

I smiled at her and gently said, "Mom, you weren't dreaming, it was real."

Renee looked at me with disbelief for a moment until it sank in.

Before I could say another word Carlisle said, "Renee, I know this is a great shock to you. We need to get that blood sugar up before we continue to prevent another fainting spell. Bella, can you go get your mother something, preferably with plenty of carbs?"

I smiled at Carlisle and said, "Sure, Dad," as I moved off to the kitchen.

Renee gasped at my use of the familiar term and I reluctantly turned back around and said, "Mom, we'll explain in a minute."

Renee nodded and I moved quickly into the kitchen to get her something to eat.

I grabbed a two sodas and packaged sandwiches from the fridge before returning to the living room. I walked over to Renee and Phil and handed them each a soda and sandwich before retaking my seat with Edward. Renee and Phil ate mechanically and after a moment, I turned to the rest of our human guests and asked if I could get them anything. Charlie and Sue declined and Jake smiled and went to the kitchen himself where I could hear him rustling around for food.

I growled slightly as I smelled Jake open the lasagnas I had prepared for later and said softly, "Unless you want me to go vampire on your butt, you won't touch those, Jacob Black."

Renee sat up startled and said, "Bella, did you just growl?"

I smiled guiltily and said, "Yah, Mom."

Finally, they finished and I could see Renee gathering herself back together before she said, "Bella, is that the worst of it?"

I smiled and said, "Yes and no, Mom, I promise there will be no more mythical creatures coming out into real life, but there is much more to tell you."

Renee looked pointedly at Ness and said, "What about her?"

I smiled and said, "Mom, I'll tell you all about Nessie here in a bit, she's easy to take I promise."

I smiled and winked at my little one, and she winked back at me as I took a deep breath to dive into the story of my life over the past ten years and said, " Mom, when I met Edward, I knew there was something different about him. I fell in love with him anyway even after Jacob told me what he really was. Edward and I fell in love and started dating. We were together starting a few weeks after I moved to Forks until the morning after my eighteenth birthday. We loved each other so much. We still do."

I smiled at Edward and he pulled me closer into him, holding me as if he was never going to let go.

I smiled at him and continued, "Mom, what Edward and I had was dangerous. Vampires have supernatural speed, strength and senses. Edward could have killed me with one misjudged touch, but we risked it anyway. I won't give you all the awkward details but suffice it to say that the night before my eighteenth birthday, Edward and I slept together for the first time. The next afternoon Edward gave me a promise ring on our way to my birthday party with the Cullens. As I was opening my gifts, I cut my finger. One of the Cullens, who was fairly new to their animal blood diet lost control and attacked me. Edward saved my life, but I was severely injured in the process. When I woke up in the hospital, my promise ring was gone and my normal doctor was not there to take care of me. Two days later, I got a DVD that broke my heart. It was all a lie, though; Edward left to keep me safe and not because he didn't love me."

I paused and looked at Edward, the grief was clear all over his face.

I snuggled into him and murmured an 'I love you' before I turned to my mom and continued with, "As you can see, it still eats Edward up to this day. Dad called you the day after I got the DVD. When you asked me if I was pregnant, I knew that it was completely impossible because of what Edward is, and so I told you what I thought was the truth, but it turns out that everyone was wrong. The day I left Forks was the day I found out that I was pregnant with Edward's child. The child was developing at an astonishing rate and I knew no regular doctor was going to be able to help me, so I went to Denali, Alaska to try to get in touch with the Cullens. Through a horrible miscommunication, I thought the Denali coven was refusing to contact the Cullens and so I tricked Eleazar into telling me about the Volturi. The Volturi are the rulers of the vampire world and so I went to Volterra, Italy to get their help. They agreed to help me, if I agreed to serve on the guard for ten years after I was turned. Long story short, there were others out there like me, although very few knew of their existence. However, in every other case the mothers died, so I had to be turned to save my life. In a twist of fate, the Volturi tried to track down Carlisle to help with the birth process, but they were never able to catch up with them, always missing them by a few hours. In the end, once the council delivered my baby and started the turning process three weeks after I left Forks. Our daughter gained some traits from both of us, both in looks and in species. It took her seven years to reach full maturity. Like others of her kind, once she reached adulthood she stopped aging completely, and will remain the same for the rest of time."

At this, Renee finally stopped me and said, "Is my granddaughter here? Do I get to meet her?"

I smiled and said, "Mom, you've already met her. Renesmee is your granddaughter. When you asked Edward if she was related to him, he told you the truth, he just didn't mention that Nessie is his daughter and not his sister."

I smiled at my little one who gracefully got up and slowly moved towards Renee. Renee clumsily got to her feet and looked Nessie over whispering to herself, labeling what traits she had gotten from each one of us.

Finally Renee said, "Hi, sweetheart, I-"

Nessie smiled and said, "I have looked forward to meeting you for so long, Grandma," and then she carefully hugged her grandmother.

I smiled as I watched my family finally get to know each other. After a moment, Phil also got up, hugged both of them, and smiled at Nessie.

Suddenly Renee moved out of the embrace and looked accusingly at Jake and said, "You were talking about my granddaughter the whole way over here, Jake?"

Jacob smiled at my mom sheepishly and said, "Guilty - Grandma."

Renee stood up and walked over to Jake fuming the whole way. She stood right in front of him and swung her arm like she was going to slap him. I moved at full vampire speed and stopped her a few inches from her face as I gently said, "Mom, that's not a good idea, unless you want to break your hand."

Renee stumbled backwards slightly, brokenly trying to ask about the speed I had just displayed. Just as I backed her away, I heard and felt Edward growl and saw out him shift into a crouch out of the corner of my eye. I rolled my eyes and stepped in front of Edward before he could spring. Renee was looking on dumbfounded.

Finally, Edward half shifted out of his crouch and spat out, "He was describing how fabulous Nessie's body was for her grandmother in vivid detail. I'm going to tear him to pieces."

I turned towards Jacob and growled loudly at him as well as I yelled, "Jacob Black, I would tear you to pieces if my daughter wouldn't hate me for the rest of eternity for it. Don't you EVER do anything like that again. Do you understand me?"

Jake looked at me and mumbled, "Sorry Mom, I won't do that again. Really, Bells, sorry."

I glared at him and said, "I'll deal with you later - _**son**_."

Then I put my hand on Edward's shoulder and coaxed him back into his seat. After a few more moments hugging her grandparents, Ness walked over to Jacob and smacked him hard.

"You are in the dog house, Jacob Black," she growled at him before sitting back down on the couch.

Suddenly, I heard Emmett start to giggle and then Rose joined in and pretty soon the whole family was laughing at Nessie's comment, and the idea of Jacob in a literal doghouse.

We spent the rest of the night explaining everything to Renee in detail. She had a hard time accepting all of it. Especially when we told her about our unique gifts and demonstrated them for her. Before Renee and Phil left, Renee made plans to meet up with Alice and Esme about wedding planning and I smiled knowing my mom was going to be okay with it, and be a part of our lives after all. I waved at my mom as she drove off and headed back into the house with my soon to be husband.

**Just three chapters left to go… sad but true**

**Thanks again to Ginginlee who has done an amazing job cleaning this thing up for me :)  
**

**We are almost at 300 reviews at the time of this posting… I'd love to see tons of reviews for this chapter… I might just get the next one to you sooner if I get lots of reviews…**


	31. Chapter 31 Say Goodbye

**A/N: Warning… lemon ahead **

**I'd like to thank my wonderful beta ginginlee. She helped this flow so much better than it did originally.**

Chapter 31- Say Goodbye

Before we knew it, the weeks had passed in a blur, and we had reached the night before our wedding. Edward was standing at the door, waiting to say goodbye, before the boys dragged him off for a supernatural version of a bachelor party. I ran down the stairs to him and threw my arms around him, kissing him with everything I had.

I glared at Emmett and said, "No strippers, right, Em?"

He laughed evilly, Edward rolled his eyes and whispered in my ear, "He's just trying to make you nervous, love, we are just going hunting and dragging the wolves along with us."

I pouted at him and said, "Do you have to go, love?"

Edward smiled at me and said, "I don't want to, love, but I don't think I'm being given a choice in the matter."

As if that were a cue, Emmett and Jasper grabbed Edward and yanked him out the door, while Alice and Rose grabbed Nessie and I and dragged us upstairs and away from the boys.

Once they got me upstairs and into Edward's room, they looked at us both mischievously and Rose said, "All right girls, we are going out dancing tonight without the boys at a little club, and after that we are going hunting and then we'll get Ness to bed. After that it's Bella Barbie time!"

I just flopped back on the bed and groaned. This night was going to be worse than I'd thought. I shot murderous glances at both of my sisters as they came at me, outfit in hand. I glared at them both as they put me in a revealing get-up that I would normally have never been caught dead in. Then, once they decided that they were done with me, they moved onto Nessie, giving her a more covered version of what I had one.

The club was worse than I expected it to be. I was hit on constantly and had to tell both guys and girls that I was not interested repeatedly. One creep would not take no for an answer and attempted to slip a roofie in my untouched drink. I growled at him and bared my teeth that were coated with venom. He backed away from me, terrified, and almost ran out of the club. After that, I went and found Alice, Rose and Nessie and demanded that we leave. Alice and Rose protested but after Nessie showed them what happened they sobered up and decided that leaving would be the best plan after all.

Once we left the club and loaded the car, I growled at them and said forcefully, "Girls, I know you meant no harm, but what if it that had been Nessie's drink?"

They looked at me with wide eyes and it sunk in.

Alice finally stammered out, "Bella, I- I didn't see anything bad happening, I'm sorry, hon. I never would have-"

I stopped her and said, "Alice, hon, it's ok, I know, just no more clubbing with my half human daughter and none of our boys around to protect her."

Alice and Rose both nodded animatedly at me and I felt Ness scowl at me.

I turned to my daughter and said, "Yes, dear one, I know you're an almost married woman but you are still my daughter and I will protect you as much as I can."

Ness continued to scowl at me, but after a minute, hugged me tightly.

When we got back to the house, we all changed into more casual, rougher wear clothes so that we could go hunting. Ness didn't have to hunt, she could survive on human food, but she hated the stuff and so she chose to hunt whenever possible. As we wandered, occasionally killing things that crossed our paths I suddenly heard Alice squeak near me.

I quickly located her and she rapidly fired out, "Bella, we are gonna run into the guys hunting, Edward and Jacob aren't going to be able to keep their hands off you two looking as fierce as you do now. This is gonna be fun."

With that, Alice carefully and artfully slashed my clothing keeping me covered while still drawing eyes to all the right places and then went after Nessie. I rolled my eyes and was about to say something to her when I was distracted by the scent of a mountain lion nearby and I veered to go after it. After a few moments, I had it in my sight and pounced lightly on it, snapping its neck and draining it dry. As I finished up, I heard a growl behind me and before I had a chance to see who it was, Edward was on top of me, kissing me hungrily. I felt his lips suck on mine and his tongue darting out, tasting the blood that was still on my mouth. Then I felt his tongue push against my mouth begging entrance. I opened my mouth to him and allowed the last draw of blood that remained in my mouth to dance across my tongue and his. I felt him growl fiercely at this and my eyes opened wide when I felt him suck on my tongue and mouth savoring every taste. Edward broke the kiss and I saw his eyes were heavy with both blood lust and desire for me. I smiled mischievously at him and I pushed into him. Edward gasped in air and then growled at me, attacking my mouth again with more force than I had ever felt from him before. I grabbed the hem of his shirt and broke our kiss to force it over his head. Edward's eyes burned with need into mine as I ran my hands over his chest and then his back, pulling him against me.

Once we had calmed back down Edward grinned at me mischievously and said, "Love, our siblings are about to descend, they've decided we've had time enough. We have about thirty seconds until our daughter, her fiancé and our family sees us like this. Get dressed quickly love."

I grinned at him and threw my clothes on in a flash, having practiced it many times when we had to be ready at a moments' notice while I was the Volturi. Then I turned and helped Edward finish getting dressed. Emmett came noisily into the clearing saying something that sounded horribly like 'I hope we're not interrupting something,' and then they all strode into view with devilish smiles on their faces. I saw as every one of their faces fell as they realized that Edward's mind reading skills had gotten the better of them again.

Edward smiled at them and said, "Well, boys, I believe we have some hunting to do since someone took my kill."

Then he turned and kissed me passionately before grabbing his brothers and Jacob, and moving off into the night.

The girls had decided that we had enough and Nessie was falling asleep on her feet, so we returned to the house. The sun was just starting to peak over the hilltops, and Alice and Rose got that Bella Barbie gleam in their eye and I was overwhelmed that it was my wedding day.

**I hate to say it, but we only have two chapters left! I would like to say thank you to all my wonderful readers, who have been really encouraging, as I've put this online. I am working fast and furiously on the other side of the story. I hope to get it done before the end of the summer.**

**Reviews make me smile!**


	32. Chapter 32 I now pronounce you

**A/N: I apologize for the delay in getting this chapter to you… I went on vacation to see my brand new niece and when I got back into town I had more family here. So needless to say, life has been kind of crazy for me :) There is only one chapter left after this :) **

Chapter 32 - I now pronounce you…

I was so grateful for the fact that I was a vampire while I was subjected to Alice and Rosalie's wedding day version of Bella Barbie. The girls were struggling with how to arrange my hair and makeup since I had a relatively short period between my wedding and Nessie's and I had to go from bride to mother of the bride. The idea of was somewhat daunting to me. To our human guests of course Nessie was Edward's cousin that I had befriended while I was living in Italy. The official story was that I had left home almost eleven years before and had never returned because I could not handle any reminders of Edward. Then, Edward had come to visit his cousin in Italy, not realizing that I was her roommate. We saw each other again while he was there and we ended up back together. Secretly, the family had a good laugh at the simplicity of the cover story, knowing how far off reality was from the fiction they would have to believe. I was concerned that the whole thing was a bit of a stretch, but Alice assured me that it would work without a hitch. Finally, the girls decided on a simple but classic updo that they could pull down quickly and brush into waves, then pin back in an appropriate mother of the bride look. Then they figured out a simple way to go from 'blushing' bride makeup to a look that would work with the dusky blue dress that I would wear for Nessie and Jacob's wedding. Finally, they finished getting my hair into place and pinning in my crystal trimmed veil before starting on my makeup. As they worked on my face, I allowed my eyes to drift closed and I started to imagine what Edward was going to look like in a perfectly fitted black tuxedo, and I smiled in spite of myself.

Alice snapped me out of it good-naturedly and said, "Bells, you'll get to see the real Edward soon enough, relax your face so I can finish your makeup."

I laughed slightly out of embarrassment, mentally reminding myself how glad I was that I could no longer blush and focused slightly on keeping a straight face. Just as the girls finished up, I heard Nessie's heart speed up slightly in the next room and I knew she must have been waking up.

Sure enough, about three seconds later, Alice barked out, "Ness, get your bridal butt in here so we can get your makeup and hair done."

I heard Ness groan something that sounded suspiciously like 'evil pixie of an aunt' and then I heard the sounds of her slowly crawling out of bed. I chuckled to myself and was reminded yet again, how much we were alike, not having been a morning person in my human life either.

Slowly, a blurry-eyed Nessie reluctantly made her appearance in Alice's gigantic bathroom, where she begrudgingly submitted to torture at the hands of her aunts. They pulled her hair this way and that, and somehow got it into the perfect bridesmaid look that would transfer easily to bridal. Then, they went to town on her makeup. I laughed as Nessie growled menacingly at Alice and Rose.

I whispered, "I thought you liked all this fashion stuff, my dear," as I shot an amused expression at my frustrated daughter.

Ness rolled her eyes at me and shot back, "I do when I'm fully awake to enjoy it. Trust my aunts to attack me first thing in the morning while I'm still all grouchy."

Ness shot another set of angry and frustrated looks at her fashion-crazed aunts.

Alice turned to me and mouthed, "Down, kitty."

I laughed again, knowing that in comparison to a full-fledged vampire, Ness did not have the strength to do anything besides look annoyed. I tried to slip out of the room to see if I could catch a glimpse of Edward but the moment I took a step towards the door, Alice had her arms wrapped around me holding me back. Stupid future-seeing vampire of a sister.

Alice laughed and said, "Now, Bella, you can hold out a few more hours. You'll see Edward soon enough."

I growled at Alice and looked at her with annoyance.

Suddenly, I heard the most perfect laugh echo through the house and my soon to be husband loudly say, "Love, I'd come rescue you, but Alice and Rose would rip me to pieces and I would rather be whole on our wedding day."

I smiled and shouted back, "I love you, Edward."

To that, I heard various groans throughout the house.

Then I heard right outside the door in a reverent whisper, "I love you, my beautiful Bella."

I smiled, sighed, and turned my attention back to my little one and her aunts.

The hours seemed to drag on endlessly. Even though there was plenty of activity going on around me, I couldn't seem to settle down. I missed Edward terribly. After over ten years without him, fourteen hours should be something easy to handle, but any separation from Edward was difficult now. Sporadically through the day, Edward would yell that he loved me and threatened numerous times to run upstairs and rescue me, his sisters be damned. The only thing keeping Edward at bay was the idea of being in pieces on our wedding day.

The only distractions I had all day were when Renee, Phil and Charlie showed up at the house and came to see Ness and I. Renee was consistently in tears at the idea of her baby and her granddaughter getting married. Charlie stood there saying little, his eyes communicating what he never could verbalize. Phil hung back, showing his support, but not wanting to intrude too much in a moment that he knew really belonged to Charlie and Renee. After some small talk and discussion over how we looked, Charlie and Renee grinned at each other like kids on Christmas morning.

I looked at them questioningly and finally Renee burst out, "We have something for both of you."

Wordlessly, Renee pulled out two small boxes and turned to Renesmee.

"Ness honey, this is for you. It was your great grandmother's," Renee said as she carefully pulled out a beautiful silver necklace with small sparkling diamonds that seemed to be woven right into the chain, and held it out for Ness to examine before carefully putting it around her neck.

Nessie teared up and with a voice thick with emotion said, "Grand- Renee, thank you so much. Grandpa, thank you!"

Both of my parents whispered their responses as Ness hugged them each in turn. Then my parents turned to me holding the remaining box.

Renee looked at me lovingly and said, "These were your grandmother's Bella. We replaced the paste stones with real sapphires."

Then Renee pulled out two beautiful hair combs and handed them to me. I held them in my hands for a moment watching the stones sparkle in the light. Then Alice took them from me and gently put them in my hair where she must have planned for them to go all along. Wordlessly, I carefully threw my granite arms around my parents and hugged them with as much force as I could without hurting them.

Then, I whispered, "Thank you. I love you both."

Charlie and Renee held onto me for a long pregnant moment before letting go and walking out as Carlisle and Esme walked in.

Carlisle smiled warmly at Nessie and I, then turned to Alice and Rose, and said, "Girls, do you mind giving us a moment?"

Alice and Rose smiled as they ducked out of the bathroom we were still trapped in. Esme and Carlisle looked at us both and then Carlisle reached towards Esme for something. Esme opened a small bag she had been carrying and pulled out two velvet sacks.

"Bella, you have been a member of this family for so long. We have been holding onto this for you since your eighteenth birthday where we had planned to give it to you. Today seemed like a fitting day for that," Carlisle said as he pulled open the drawstring on one of the bags and lifted out a silver bracelet.

The bracelet was a round wide bangle with small crests placed into it at even intervals. If I had been able to cry, I would have in that moment. Esme smiled at me, recognizing the expression on my face and what it meant. Then, together, Esme and Carlisle slipped the bracelet onto my hand that signified my official status as a member of their family.

I hugged them both and brokenly whispered, "thank you," and, "I love you," into their ears.

Suddenly, with a shrill tone I heard Alice screech across the house, "Edward, don't you dare look into their thoughts - be glad you're being allowed to hear it at all!"

Carlisle chuckled and said, "Edward, I'll do a replay for you later, son."

Esme giggled slightly and then handed the other bag to her husband.

Carlisle turned and smiled at Nessie and said, "Ness, you've been part of this family since the day you were born. I think I knew way back when I met you that you were meant to be part of this family. I just had no idea that you were already a more important part than I could ever guess. We have something for you as well, dear one."

With that, Carlisle opened the other bag gently and turned it over, allowing a small ring to fall out of the bag. The crest was in the center of the ring and the band was connected on opposite ends of the oval crest, creating a beautiful wave-like effect. Nessie smiled as hand over hand Carlisle and Esme placed it on her ring finger of her right hand.

Nessie breathed in with tears glistening in her eyes as she whispered, "Grandma, Grandpa, I-"

Then my little one threw her arms around her grandparents, hugging them with all the strength she could muster.

Alice burst into the room, kicking Carlisle out and ordering Esme to sit. Esme groaned theatrically as she sunk into the vanity chair, allowing Alice to begin working on her. A few moments later, a done up Rosalie dragged my mother in again and started working on her. Ness and I looked at each other conspiringly and started to move towards the exit.

Alice turned, rolled her eyes at us and said, "You two have to help each other dress. Ness, you are in charge of keeping her in the room and away from Edward. I will come in and intervene if necessary."

I growled at Alice in annoyance as I stalked from the room. Ness laughed behind me and followed me into the next room.

Somehow, a changing screen had been installed in Alice and Jasper's bedroom and everything we needed besides my gown was laid out on the bed. I grabbed what I needed and slipped behind the screen. Once I was in all the undergarments I stepped out to have Ness help me step into the dress. Ness deftly spread the dress out across the floor, picked me up, and placed me in the center without touching an inch of the fabric.

I raised an eyebrow at her and she rolled her eyes and said, "Aunt Alice made me practice."

I laughed and shouted loudly, "Alice, you made her practice helping me into my gown?"

Alice shouted back in retort, "Yes, I didn't know if she was as clumsy as you and since I couldn't see - I made her practice."

I laughed again and then pulled the dress up around me. Ness got behind me and started fastening the extremely long row of tiny buttons as fast as her little fingers could fly. I had kept my eyes closed at every fitting and just as Ness finished, all of the girls burst into the room. I slowly turned and looked straight into the mirror and for once in my life, I felt as beautiful as Edward always said I was. Before I could turn the girl in the mirror back into myself, I turned to get my new family's reactions. Everyone was speechless.

Alice looked at me and said, "I had a vision, but even in my vision it wasn't this perfect Bella. Edward is going to flip!"

I smiled and watched my mom's jaw drop. Apparently, we had forgotten to tell her about Alice's little gift.

One gigantic freak out and explanation later, we hurried to get Esme and Renee dressed while Alice grumbled almost continuously about Ness blocking her abilities some of the time. Esme and my mother were wearing two dark blue dresses. My mother in the dressiest and most feminine skirt and jacket combination I had ever seen and Esme in a dress that seemed like it had grown on her, it fit her so perfectly.

Then, all of the sudden, time went into fast forward. Alice and Rose left to put on their dresses for the weddings, dusky blue, and I heard the guests start to arrive. If I was still human, I knew my heart would have been beating out of my chest. I heard Edward speaking to the minister and heard their voices shift as they took their places outside. Then Jasper, Emmett, Jacob and Charlie came to join us and it was suddenly time for me to become a Cullen. I was already Edward's forever.

I know, I'm a giant tease ;) I promise that the actual wedding is in the last chapter :)

Okay, bad news- it has been brought to my attention that a couple of key scenes are not within this site's guidelines- I will be changing them on THIS SITE ONLY. They will remain intact on Twilighted. I apologize if you are coming from over there to get ahead. Certain scenes have been altered here…

Thank you to all my readers and reviewers :) You all make me smile – a lot :)

Thanks again Ginginlee!


	33. Chapter 33 Two Brides

**A/N: Sad but true- we have reached the end of our story :( I would like to thank all of my readers and reviewers for sticking with me through this journey. I would also like to thank my fabulous beta, Ginginlee, who helped make this amore enjoyable!**

**Sadly Twilight doesn't belong to me…**

**More at the end about my next projects…**

Chapter 33- Two Brides

I watched as Jasper gracefully floated down the stairs with Esme on his arm, looking like the picture of perfection. Then, Emmett towered over my mother, gliding down the stairs and the aisle to my seat. Although I could see the chairs perfectly well, someone had put a very strategically placed and large arching arrangement at the front of the platform, completely obscuring my view. I had large suspicions that Alice was the culprit. Then Ness and Jacob walked down the aisle as members of the wedding party, looking at each other lovingly knowing they would get to make this trip in a couple hours under a very different set of circumstances. Alice and Rose made their ways down on their husbands' arms, looking sweetly at one another.

I looked at Charlie and he gulped and said, "Bells, don't let me fall."

I laughed lightly and whispered, "Dad, I'm a vampire - that means grace and strength. You have nothing to worry about."

Slowly we made our way down the staircase. As I stepped down, more and more of the platform came into view. At first, I saw shoes, then legs, the torsos, then upper bodies, until finally I could see faces.

My eyes locked into Edward's the moment I found him and I stopped in my tracks. Edward's jaw dropped and he gasped in a breath and then stood there unmoving. Edward was in a black tuxedo, cut as if it had been made for him setting off his perfect pale skin and gorgeous copper hair. He had a look of total shock and awe and I was amazed to know it was for me.

Finally, he pulled his mouth closed and his face blossomed into his perfect crooked smile as he said at vampire-only hearing levels, "Death, that hath sucked the honey of thy breath, hath had no power yet upon thy beauty- Death cannot part true love, only delay it for a while. I love you my beautiful Bella, my bride."

I smiled as I recognized both quotes, one from one of my favorite movies and the other from one of my favorite books, both perfect for two vampires who had already faced death on their wedding day. I slightly squeezed Charlie's arm and started up the aisle as Rose began to play a reworked version of my lullaby that I had never heard before. This still had the same peaceful perfect melody but somehow the spirit behind it had changed. Instead of a melancholy infused into it with the lack of resolution, there was a sense of joy, peace, and happiness that brought the song to life, and made it feel finally complete. I finally stopped under the archway, Charlie handed me over to my Edward in a motion as eternal as time and together, Edward and I walked up the platform towards the minister.

We had contemplated doing our own vows, and had finally decided against it, opting instead to use the traditional ceremony with the exact wording that would have been used if Edward had been married in 1918 instead of the 21st century. Edward and I looked into each other's eyes, reciting after the minister and occasionally speaking so low that no one could hear us. I pulled my shield down a few times and overwhelmed him with my thoughts, letting him see exactly how much I loved him directly.

Finally, Edward took my hand and slipped my engagement ring off my finger. This was the only alteration to the ceremony we had made.

Edward took a thin band with tiny diamonds fitted into it and said, "This ring is for the day so many years ago when you promised to be mine. This ring is my mother's engagement ring that I put on your hand after fate brought you back to me and you swore to be mine again forever."

Then he pulled out another band identical to the first and said, "And with this ring, I thee wed."

I took my hand, gently cupped his cheek momentarily, and then turned to grab his rings from Alice.

I turned to Edward and took out the first wire-thin band and carefully pushed it onto his hand and said, "Edward, this ring is for loving me even when everything was against us."

Then I grabbed a thick hammered white gold ring and said, "This ring is for the fact that you never stopped loving me, even when there was no hope, only despair, and yet still not giving up your love for me."

I smiled at Edward, took a third wire width band, and reverently placed it on his finger as I said, "And with this ring, I thee wed."

Then the minister said the words that made it official and finally sweetly said, "Edward, you may kiss your bride."

Edward's whole face lit up with joy as his perfect crooked smile stretched across his face before he lowered his face and pressed his lips into mine. I threw my arms around him and deepened the kiss for a moment before backing off and ending it sweetly. All around us, I knew that there were catcalls, clapping, and cheers, but I couldn't bring myself to stop looking at my Edward, my husband. I smiled as we turned our bodies to face the crowd, our eyes never leaving the others. We heard the minister introduce us Mr. and Mrs. Edward Cullen, and then we glided down the aisle with grace and back through the doors of the house, greeting our guests would have to wait.

Edward grabbed my hand and moved at vampire speed to his bedroom. The moment I was through the door, he locked it and picked me up off the floor holding me at arms' length above his head spinning in dizzy circles around the room.

I smiled at him and said, "Won't Alice be looking for us, love?"

He smiled back and said, "We have a few minutes. Ness is distracting her."

I smiled and Edward turned to his stereo and pushed play. Then, pulling me towards him, the first notes of Claire de Lune filled the air and we danced to them together, reveling in our first moments together as husband and wife.

The moment the last note ended, Alice came knocking on the door and we both growled in her direction, not wanting to be split apart.

Alice knocked again and said, "Bella, I need you out now, you don't want to miss your daughter's wedding, you two. Let's go!"

I groaned and reluctantly removed myself from Edward's arms and opened the door to Alice. Alice grabbed my hand and rushed me from the room. At full vampire speed, Alice had me out of my dress and into her bathroom, quickly unpinning my hair as she went. In the chair next to me, Rose was frantically throwing Nessie's hair into a more formal and bridal updo. Alice finger brushed out my curls and then using the two combs secured the front section of my hair back, creating a soft and romantic look very befitting of the matron of honor who also happened to be the mother of the bride.

Then Alice quickly removed the bridal makeup and applied something more fitting to my dress and then pointed at the next room and said, "Get dressed, now, and then get Nessie's gown ready to go."

I nodded and went into the next room and slipped into my dusky blue gown. I laid out Nessie's dress, and Ness was immediately rushed into the room and the dress was put on her.

Alice quickly put her jewelry on and yelled out. "We're ready, boys."

I took Nessie aside and opened the door to Edward who was holding a black wooden box in his hands. Edward opened the box gently and revealed our gifts to our daughter. Edward had written a wedding march for our little one and I had placed a small delicate bracelet that had diamonds spaced across a delicate chain and a small heart shaped charm that said, _To our miracle child, our Renesmee. Love, Mom and Dad. _Nessie gasped and threw her arms around both of us. Alice abruptly appeared in the room, fastening the bracelet around Nessie's wrist.

I smiled and pulled down my shield and thought at Edward, "Apparently today is the day for jewelry."

Edward laughed and squeezed my shoulders as I pulled my shield back up.

Then Edward held his hand out to his daughter and said, "Shall we, my Renesmee?"

Nessie smiled and took her father's arm. I stepped down and linked my arm through Carlisle's, who was on loan from Esme since my husband was otherwise occupied. The other two girls walked down on their husband's arms again. Then I walked down on my father in law's arm and tried to suppress a giggle when I heard the whispers about how perfect the whole family looked and their jealousy, and I thought to myself, if they only knew the heavy price of this perfection. I reached the podium and stood in my appointed spot, Carlisle going to join Esme in the chairs. Ness had insisted that the bridesmaids and groomsmen stand together. Edward and Nessie started their movement down the stairs as a light, sweet and poignant melody filled the air. Every note embodied all that our daughter was as a young woman, and I smiled at how perfectly Edward's piece had turned out.

Finally, Ness and Edward reached the arch where Jacob stood waiting for his bride.

The minister asked, "Who gives this woman to this man?"

At a volume low enough only for supernatural ears, Edward said with reverence, "Her mother and I."

Then loud enough for the crowd to hear he said, "Her family does."

Then Edward tenderly put our Nessie's hand into Jake's, and held them together for a short moment before walking over to wrap his arms around me.

Edward and I stood there and watched as our daughter said her vows and exchanged rings with her husband. Then they went through a more traditional Quileute version of the ceremony before ending with the official proclamation, and their first kiss as husband and wife. After introducing them, they walked down the aisle hand in hand and into the house with their family right behind them.

After one more quick costume change into simple, but elegant, white gowns, Nessie and I went out to join our husbands and to attend the reception. The moment we got outside, we saw the wedding area had been transformed into a romantic reception. The moment they saw us, the dance floor cleared and the music stopped. Edward and I made our way to the floor with Ness and Jacob following behind us. I took Edward's hand and we began to dance together, the whole world melting away, allowing us to just be Edward and Bella.

After a moment, I gasped as I recognized the song and Edward chuckled into my ear and whispered, "You remember, love?"

I smiled at him as I recognized the song that had been playing in the restaurant in Port Angeles the night Edward had saved my life and we had fallen in love. All too soon, Charlie was tapping on Edward's shoulder, and Edward smiled before releasing me to my father and moving towards Nessie for their own father/daughter dance.

The rest of the night flew by quickly. Edward and I shared a drink of 'wine' that was really mountain lion blood and begrudgingly shoved cake in each other's mouths, turning to spit it out into a container at vampire speed when no one was looking to save us from having to retch it up later. Then, I climbed the stairs and went out onto the back balcony throwing my bouquet out the window at the still single women. I laughed when Jessica Stanley of all people caught it and she smiled sheepishly at Mike Newton, who smiled lovingly back. It was good to know that Mike and Jessica had moved on together. Once I got back downstairs, Edward sat me in a chair on the platform, got whistles and hoots when he carefully pulled my garter off with his teeth, and flung it purposefully into Mike Newton's face. I laughed and pulled Edward onto the dance floor with me and we floated together lost in our bliss.

All too soon, Alice came up and said, "Guys, it's time to go."

I smiled and walked into the house with Alice and Ness to change again into a deep blue flowing dress, as Nessie changed into a matching purple one. Ness and I joined our husbands at the door as the crowd got ready with the rose petals they were throwing outside. Nessie and Jake ran for my Lamborghini first, and then Edward and I ran for the Aston Martin, as dark red rose pedals rained down around us. Edward leaned over and kissed me before starting the car and driving off into the start of honeymoon and our happily forever after, with Nessie and Jake following just behind.

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**Thank you all!**

**I would love to see a ton of reviews for this chapter since it is the end**

**The other side of the story is in progress- I am currently working on Edward's perspective but it will include the certain things from other characters as well. I am working on it as hard as I can while also working on a fantasy novel. I hope to have **_**Cause and Effect**_** done before I finish getting Consequences on twilighted… More soon- add me to your favorite authors so you know the moment I get the other side of this one online!**

**Thank you again, you have no idea how much I appreciate all the time you have spent reading and reviewing my story :) **


	34. Cause and Effect

Cause and Effect

Cause and Effect, Edward's side of Consequences is now up and available! You can find the link on my page. Please go check it out! Many of the questions you had will be answered :)

Jenn (dnabgeek)


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